Former unified title challenger Edgar Berlanga and current IBF super lightweight champion Richardson Hitchins sign multi-fight deals with Zuffa Boxing. Both fighters are expected to make their promotional debuts this summer.
Brooklyn native Berlanga (23-2, 18 KOs) hasn’t fought since last July, when he was dominated and stopped in the fifth round by Hamzah Sheeraz. Prior to that, in March, the 28-year-old Puerto Rican scored a first-round knockout over Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz. With the win, he had bounced back from his first career loss to Canelo Alvarez in September 2024 in his bid to claim the unified WBA, WBC, and WBO super middleweight titles.
Last December, Berlanga was reported to challenge Armando Resendiz for the WBA super middleweight title, but that fight never materialized.
“Zuffa Boxing is changing the game,” Berlanga said. “I’m here for the biggest fights on boxing’s best platform. I’m here to put the super middleweight division on notice. ‘The Monster’ is back!”
“Thank you to Dana White, Nick Khan, and the entire Zuffa Boxing team for believing in my talent. I also want to thank my father, Edgar Berlanga Sr., and my manager, Keith Connolly, for always guiding me in the right direction, and this move is no different. This is going to be a special journey.”
Latest reigning world champion signs with Zuffa Boxing
Undefeated Hitchins (20-0, 8 KOs) was scheduled to make his second defense of the IBF super lightweight title against Oscar Duarte on the Barrios vs. Garcia undercard in February, but the fight was canceled after Hitchins withdrew due to illness.
In his first defense last July, Brooklyn native Hitchins, 28, stopped George Kambosos Jr. in the eighth round, after claiming the belt by split decision against Liam Paro in late 2024.
Richardson Hitchins becomes the latest reigning IBF champion to sign with Zuffa Boxing, following Jai Opetaia, whose cruiserweight belt was recently stripped by the sanctioning body.
“This is a major step forward in my career,” Hitchins said. “I’m very grateful for this opportunity, and I want to thank Dana White, Nick Khan, and my manager, Keith Connolly, for giving a kid from Brooklyn the opportunity to fight on the biggest stage against the world’s best fighters. With Zuffa Boxing in my corner, I’m going to show the world that I am a pound-for-pound, generational fighter.”
Opponents for Berlanga and Hitchins in their Zuffa Boxing debuts, along with additional event information, are expected to be announced shortly.
Up next on the promotion’s schedule is Zuffa Boxing 6, featuring Shane Mosley Jr. (22-5, 12 KOs) of Pomona, California, against Ukraine’s Serhii Bohachuk (27-3, 24 KOs) in a middleweight bout on May 10 at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas.