Few things are more intriguing than a true 50-50 fight between rising contenders.

That'll be what takes place when Edgar Berlanga and Hamzah Sheeraz square off in a WBC super middleweight title eliminator in the main event of "Ring III" at Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens, New York, on DAZN PPV.

Berlanga (23-1, 18 KOs) enters the bout off a first-round knockout of Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz and seeks to cement his place among the world's best super middleweights. Sheeraz (21-0-1, 17 KOs) hopes to move past a lackluster split draw against WBC middleweight champion Carlos Adames and announce his presence at 168-pounds in emphatic fashion.

There's no shortage of storylines heading into the high-stakes clash, so here are five burning questions heading into Saturday's main event.

Among the key talking points has been the Sheeraz-Andy Lee relationship entering Saturday. Sheeraz, 26, made the switch from Ricky Funez after his highly disputed draw against Adames in a fight many believed the champion did more than enough to win.

Lee has rapidly become one of the sport's better trainers and has assembled a strong stable that includes interim WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker, Olympic silver medalist Ben Whittaker and welterweight contender Paddy Donovan. But even with that, there's nothing that can truly replicate what Lee and Sheeraz will encounter here.

"I would have preferred him to have had a fight with Andy Lee first before this one," veteran trainer David Coldwell said. “Andy was a long, rangy fighter who could crack a little bit as well and knew how to use that range. If he can get that into Hamzah in quick time, then it's a difficult night for Berlanga."

Can the 6-foot-3 Sheeraz apply everything Lee has taught and prepared him for against Berlanga? Will Lee be able to push the right buttons to encourage Sheeraz if the fight is close, entering the latter stages? The answers can only come on Saturday night and will likely determine if Sheeraz and Lee’s partnership begins on a high note.

You would think Berlanga and Canelo Alvarez engaged in a back-and-forth brawl for 12 rounds, given how the Brooklyn, New York, native has talked about their fight last autumn.

Functioning eyeballs and stats firmly go against that, as Canelo largely controlled the bout en route to a unanimous decision on Sept. 14. Still, Berlanga turned in a better-than-expected performance, showing signs of growth as the fight progressed and that he may belong in the conversation with the world's top 168-pounders.

"I thought he handled himself as well, especially in the second half of the fight," trainer Stephen "Breadman" Edwards told The Ring. "You can see him growing as the fight went on, and he didn't completely fall apart.

"You can always take a positive from that, even though he lost. I think that was a valuable learning experience. ... He went from a little bit out of his depth to a guy that was like, 'You know what, I can compete on this level.'"

In his lone fight since his first loss, the 28-year-old did what he expected to do in quickly dispatching of overmatched Gonzalez-Ortiz on March 15. Given the mismatch, it was impossible to see whether he's developed since the Canelo experience.

In Sheeraz, Berlanga encounters his first true opportunity to display whether he's improved. Whether he has or hasn't is one of many factors that will decide a fight that could go either way.

The addition of Lee as the chief second isn't the only significant change.

He's also moving up eight pounds from middleweight and fighting at super middleweight for the first time. The move comes after eight fights at 160 pounds and his silent struggles to make the weight most recently against Adames.

"I heard rumors about how drawn and gone he always looked at the weigh-in," Coldwell said. "To actually see him on the weigh-in day and to see how skinny and drawn he did look, that's got to have some sort of effect on your strength, punching power and your sturdiness the following day. So, does 168 make him a stronger fighter and a more powerful fighter? I would say it probably does."

At 6-foot-3, Sheeraz unquestionably has the super middleweight frame and it wouldn't be surprising if he campaigns at light heavyweight one day. Still, the eight-pound jump is significant and Sheeraz won't be easing into the new class.

"I've always said that the jump from 160 to 168 was the biggest jump in boxing, as far as the body mass and the size,” Breadman said. "I think Sheeraz has to hurt Berlanga early. … [Sheeraz is] not a bad athlete, but he's a little bit static with his movements, and a little bit of a big target. When you're moving up in weight like that, and dealing with a guy that has the physicality Berlanga does, he's pretty heavy-handed and a big guy for 168 pounds."

If Sheeraz and his team have handled the move up in weight properly, he could be even more dangerous and an even bigger puncher at 168. But if it's handled like a middleweight just moving up without adding muscle naturally or trying to grow into the weight class, it could be a recipe for disaster.

One could argue there's no bigger advantage going into the fight than the edge Berlanga will have in strength.

Berlanga has fought at super middleweight since 2020 and filled out nicely into the division, missing weight his last fight notwithstanding. With that comes more experience fighting against physically bigger guys by comparison.

After 23-3-1 pro Demond Nicholson snapped his stoppage streak in an eight-round decision defeat in April 2021, Berlanga banked 48 rounds in his subsequent six bouts preceding Alvarez, culminating in a sixth-round stoppage of 18-0 pro Padraig McCrory.

The Florida-born Puerto Rican is the naturally bigger, stronger fighter, and if he can get inside Sheeraz's range those advantages and his experience could pay dividends.

Berlanga's rise to prominence came as he accumulated 16 straight first-round knockouts to begin his career.

Having secured another when dismissing Gonzalez-Ortiz four months ago, he's been adamant about making it two in two against Sheeraz. Victory over Sheeraz, no matter how it arrives, would be a career-best result, but another first-round knockout would give him a strong case that he's on the division's shortlist behind Alvarez.

While there's no doubting the statement Berlanga would make if he stops Sheeraz in the opening stanza, going for broke and not getting that knockout also could backfire. If Berlanga puts too much into trying to notch a first-round finish, he could be left with little in the tank for the remaining 11 rounds and make Sheeraz's path to a victory much clearer.

Although the highlight-reel finishes slowed, Berlanga has since shown that he's not just a one-trick pony and can fight well throughout a 10- or 12-round contest. With the unknowns heading into Saturday and Sheeraz packing a big punch of his own, Berlanga could be better served easing into their encounter early and picking things up as he settles in.