Roach (25-1-3, 10 KOs) and Zepeda (33-1, 27 KOs) are coming into the matchup off mixed results.

Roach has endured the drama of fighting to back-to-back draws against Gervonta Davis and Isaac Cruz, while Zepeda took his first loss against Shakur Stevenson last summer.

Jamel Herring, a former 130-pound WBO titleholder, handed Roach his only loss, winning a unanimous decision in November 2019 during his first championship defense. The skilled southpaw's title reign ended after two more successful defenses in October 2021, losing by 10th-round stoppage to Stevenson.

Herring has transitioned to bare knuckle boxing this year and is already a BKFC titleholder. The 40-year-old also is transitioning into another field he's fond of — breaking down fights.

"It's a very interesting matchup," Herring told The Ring. "Lamont has to box, counterpunch and start faster than against Davis and Cruz. He can't allow a few rounds to go by to find his rhythm; those can cost him on the scorecards going down the stretch. Both [draws] could have gone his way, as he fought convincingly in spots. Cruz surprised me by letting off the gas and that's when Lamont started picking him apart and countering. He was even backing Cruz up, and we rarely see that.

"Lamont is a good counterpuncher whenever he wants to be. He just has to be a little bit more active, because Zepeda's best tool is activity. If he can overwhelm you, then he can definitely take over in a fight. So Lamont has to come into the fight in great shape and fight back. He can't sit back and think he'll get Zepeda tired, as pressure is what Zepeda is great at. If you sit back and fight at Lamont's pace, he's going to pick you apart."

Roach has insisted that he'll get Zepeda's respect once the opening bell sounds and has even questioned the Mexican's sturdy chin. Zepeda has maintained he'll capitalize on his second 135-pound title shot.

"Zepeda is a workhorse and a much bigger fighter than Cruz, even though Roach fought Cruz at 140," Herring said. "Zepeda has to stay busy and make Lamont fight whenever he doesn't want to, keep him uncomfortable and overwhelmed to force Roach on the back foot.

"Zepeda is coming in off the Shakur fight, and when I fought Shakur, I was like, 'OK, I dealt with the best. This next guy is probably not at that level.' That could be another thing that works for Zepeda in terms of mentality. It's not a knock on Lamont, because he and Shakur are definitely two different fighters.

"You can't judge a fighter by their past, especially as they have gotten better and learned from their mistakes. Fighters grow and learn from their mistakes. Look at me: I already had two losses before I beat Masayuki Ito for the title and defended it against Roach, Jonathan Oquendo and Carl Frampton before losing to Shakur."

DraftKings lists Roach as a -150 betting favorite, and Zepeda as a +120 underdog.

So what's Herring's final prediction?

"Roach has a good chance to win, as long as he doesn't dwell on his past two fights," Herring said. "He just has to be sharp in there with a new sense of purpose in the ring. It's not going to be an easy fight but Roach can come out victorious. It's definitely going to be a good one."