All participants did their job at the scale for Top Rank’s first show in New York City since the pandemic, though the first fight nearly came a day ahead of schedule.

Headlining the show, former title challenger Jose Zepeda faces streaking prospect Josue Vargas in a scheduled ten-round contest. Both boxers were well under the junior welterweight limit for Saturday’s main event, which airs live on ESPN+ from Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater in New York City.

Zepeda weighed 139.4 pounds, putting to rest any concerns of his being weight-drained and having outgrown the division. Vargas checked in at a fit-and-trim 139 pounds. The ease of making weight was the last bit of professionalism exuded by either side, as the obligatory staredown following the weigh-in devolved into a brief brawl between camps before the situation was resolved.

Zepeda (34-2, 26KOs) Is more than a year removed from his epic brawl with former titlist Ivan Baranchyk. The universally hailed 2020 Fight of the Year saw both fighters knocked down four times each, but with Zepeda having the final say as a left hand put Baranchyk down and out for good in their unforgettable October 2020 classic at a crowdless MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas.

The subsequent and most recent ring appearance for California’s Zepeda came in front of a crowd, though to considerably less fanfare in a ten-round decision over veteran Hank Lundy. The May 22 bout at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas saw Zepeda struggle to the point where it was strongly rumored that a move to welterweight was in the cards.

That day has not yet arrived, as the former title challenger remains at junior welterweight in pursuit of a second title shot. His lone effort resulted in a heartbreaking twelve-round, majority decision defeat to then-unbeaten WBC titlist Jose Ramirez in February 2019, having fought to a No-Contest three months later. Zepeda then managed a convincing ten-round win over former two-division titlist Jose Pedraza to begin his current four-fight win streak.

Vargas (19-1, 9KOs) returns to New York City for the first time since the pandemic. The Bronx-based Boricua—originally from Aguadilla, Puerto Rico—has fought twice in the MGM Grand bubble before playing to raucous cheers in his most recent bout, a ten-round win over Willie Shaw this past April at Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee, Florida—a heavily Puerto Rican-populated region.

A similar reaction should come of his return to MSG property, having last appeared in a December 2019 points win over Noel Murphy.

Saturday’s bout will mark the first for Vargas as a televised headliner. The 23-year-old southpaw has won 13 in a row since a fluke disqualification loss in his seventh pro bout.

The chief support carries a similar theme, as a rising Puerto Rican prospect faces a battle tested former title challenger.

Carlos Caraballo (14-0, 14KOs) and Jonas Sultan (17-5, 11KOs) both made weight for their intriguing ten-round bantamweight crossroads bout. Caraballo hit the scale at a ripped 117.6 pounds for just his fourth pro fight outside of his native Puerto Rico and first on the East Coast. Sultan also weighed a rock solid 117.6 pounds as he fights for the second time in just eleven weeks.

Caraballo has emerged as one of the sport’s hottest prospects, aided by his perfect knockout-to-win ratio as a pro. The 25-year-old bantamweight—who is now co-promoted by Top Rank along with his career-long affiliation with Promociones Miguel Cotto—has yet to fight beyond the sixth round, barely losing a round along the way. Caraballo has scored early wins in two straight fights in the greater San Juan area, including a fourth-round knockout of Leonardo Baez this past March in Old San Juan.

Sultan is coming off of a seventh-round knockout win over Sharone Carter this past August 14 at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California. The bout came on the undercard of countryman and reigning WBO bantamweight titlist John Riel Casimero, against whom Sultan owns a September 2017 non-title win.

The victory in August was the third in the past four fights for Sultan following a May 2018 points loss to countryman and long-reigning IBF junior bantamweight Jerwin Ancajas.

Below are the weights for the rest of the undercard:

Jonathan Guzman (24-1, 23KOs), Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, 123 pounds vs. Carlos Jackson (17-1, 11KOs), Atlanta, 123 pounds—8 rds., junior featherweight

Mathew Gonzalez (12-0, 8KOs), Ridgewood, New York, 143 pounds vs. Dakota Linger (12-5-2, 8KOs), Buckhannon, West Virginia, 141.8 pounds—6 rds, junior welterweight

Pablo Valdez (4-0, 4KOs), New York City, 148.4 pounds vs. Alejandro Martinez (2-1-1, 2KOs), Montebello, California, 148.6 pounds—6 rounds, welterweight

Jahi Tucker (4-0, 2KOs), Deer Park, New York, 147.6 pounds vs. Jorge Rodrigo Sosa (3-2, 3KOs), Asuncion, Paraguay, 145.2 pounds—6 rds, welterweight

Raymond Cuadrado (1-0, 1KO), Ridgewood, New York, 129.6 pounds vs. Michael Land (1-3-1, 1KO), Dallas, 129.4 pounds—4 rds., junior lightweight

Kasir Goldston (3-0, 1KO), Albany, New York, 142 pounds vs. Marc Misiura (2-1, 1KO), Scranton, Pennsylvania, 142.2 pounds—4 rds, junior welterweight

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for krikya360.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox