After the win in the Zuffa 09 main event on Paramount+, Berlanga said he’s ready for the upper echelon of the super middleweight division. Among the names the Brooklyn native has on his radar is WBA super middleweight champion Jaime Munguia.

“That's a big fight,” Berlanga said in the post-fight press conference. “Mexico versus Puerto Rico is gonna be a big night. He's young — he's explosive too. You got Caleb Plant, I don't know if he's still retired or he's coming back. You got Jermall Charlo, that's a great fight as well.”

Munguia (46-2, 35 KOs) won the WBA title on May 2, beating Armando Resendiz by unanimous decision. Munguia, 29, of Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, is The Ring’s No. 5-ranked super middleweight.

If Berlanga were to dethrone Munguia, he hopes that would set the table for a unification bout with a rematch against WBO titleholder Hamzah Sheeraz. After a competitive start to their fight in July 2025, Sheeraz dropped Berlanga twice in the fourth round before stopping him in the fifth.

Sheeraz, The Ring’s No. 9-ranked super middleweight, defended his title for the first time on Saturday, outpointing Simon Zachenhuber by unanimous decision in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

“We want that fight, man,” Berlanga said. “I want that smoke, but before I get that smoke, I want a world title. I want to take it from either Munguia or one of these guys, so that way when we do meet up with Hamzah Sheeraz, he's gonna have the WBO, I'm gonna have a world title, and we could do a unification fight. It's gonna be the biggest fight in boxing.”

Berlanga (24-2, 19 KOs) largely controlled the bout against Butler, 30, but it didn’t come without some adversity. In the waning seconds of the second round, the hard-hitting Canadian split the 29-year-old Berlanga’s guard with a straight right hand that sent him to the canvas.

Berlanga recovered and had Butler (38-6-1, 32 KOs) hurt on numerous occasions throughout the rest of the fight. He finally broke through with eight seconds left in the sixth round, dropping Butler after a barrage of left hooks followed by a looping right hand.

Berlanga carried the momentum into the seventh, and after a solid combination of left hooks and straight right hands, referee Eric Dali stopped the fight 1:14 into the round.

“It’s to the point that I gotta put him out cold because I feel like every time I kept hurting him, he was getting more energy,” Berlanga said. He had more energy. He was more aware. He was more alert, but we stuck with the game plan. I knew that when I stood composed and used my jab, the knockout was gonna come eventually.”