The matchup has sparked second-guessing because Berlanga is the clear headliner and biggest local attraction on the card. If ticket sales disappoint, much of the attention will naturally fall on him, regardless of who selected Butler as his opponent.
It’s unclear whether Berlanga and his manager, Keith Connelly, pushed for the fight or if Zuffa Boxing made the final decision. That distinction matters.
If Team Berlanga wanted a confidence-building opponent after his fifth-round knockout loss to Hamzah Sheeraz last July in Queens, the decision is understandable. Berlanga had been thoroughly outboxed and stopped after boldly predicting victory, making a safer fight a logical step in rebuilding his confidence.
If Zuffa was responsible for the matchmaking, however, it may have underestimated what fans wanted from its first New York event.
Dana White has repeatedly said Zuffa Boxing intends to make the biggest and most meaningful fights. Berlanga versus Butler hasn’t been viewed by many fans as fitting that description, particularly after Berlanga’s one-sided defeat to Sheeraz cooled much of the momentum he had built despite his earlier loss to Canelo Alvarez.
The bigger issue may be that Zuffa attempted to accomplish two different objectives with one fight.
Berlanga arguably needed a manageable comeback opponent after being stopped by Sheeraz. At the same time, he was also asked to headline the promotion’s New York debut and drive ticket sales. Those goals don’t always work together.
A rebuilding fight can make sense for a fighter’s career, but it doesn’t necessarily create the urgency that convinces fans to buy tickets weeks in advance.
Had Berlanga faced Butler in a co-feature bout beneath a stronger main event, there likely would be far less criticism. Instead, he has become the face of the event, placing the spotlight on a matchup that many fans see as lacking meaningful stakes.
With nearly three weeks remaining before fight night, ticket sales still have time to improve. But if attendance falls short of expectations, the decision to headline Zuffa Boxing’s New York debut with Berlanga against Butler is likely to remain a point of debate.
Former IBF light welterweight champion Richardson Hitchins is also featured on the card, making his Zuffa Boxing debut against Ricardo Salas. Like Berlanga, Hitchins is a Brooklyn native, giving Zuffa two hometown fighters to market in New York.
If the promotion believed the combination of Berlanga and Hitchins would be enough to drive ticket sales, the early returns suggest that assumption may have missed the mark.
Hitchins’ marketability may also have been affected by the events surrounding his canceled title defense against Oscar Duarte on February 21. Hitchins withdrew because of illness, but many fans on social media questioned the timing and speculated that he had second thoughts about facing Duarte. There has never been evidence supporting those claims, but the perception lingered and generated criticism that likely did little to enhance his drawing power.
Even before the cancellation, Hitchins had never established himself as a major ticket seller despite his technical ability. Pairing him with Berlanga, another fighter coming off a damaging loss and facing an opponent viewed as overmatched, may not have created the kind of main event package needed to generate strong demand for Zuffa Boxing’s first New York show.
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