Hamzah Sheeraz is making a couple of major changes after receiving the first blemish on his record – a draw against Carlos Adames that many felt should have been a loss.

Sheeraz, now 21-0-1 (17 KOs), was seen as the top middleweight contender but could not wrest the WBC middleweight title from Adames in February. The split draw saw scores of 118-110 for Adames, 115-114 for Sheeraz, and 114-114.

Sheeraz did suffer a hand injury in the bout. But that didn’t stop him from deciding to move up in weight and change up his coaching team.

Sheeraz will depart the middleweight division, where he had competed for the past three years, and bring his 6-foot-3 frame up to super middleweight.

“One hundred percent for my health. Not that that's an excuse or anything for my performance. Not at all,” Sheeraz said in an interview with Boxing King Media. “Moving up to 168, I think I’ll be a healthier, happier fighter.”

Sheeraz didn’t stop there, parting ways with the California-based Ricky Funez to  work in Ireland with Andy Lee, the former middleweight titleholder who has found a successful second career training fighters, including Tyson Fury.

“I’ve always been studying him,” Sheeraz said. “I studied him as a fighter. I used to watch him a lot as well. Never did I think I'd ever train with him until I started seeing him, how he works in the corner.”

Sheeraz said he needed a change and the fresh start it will provide. He thinks his development might have been a victim of his own success.

“When you keep winning, not much change happens,” he said. “And when you’re getting away with these first-round knockouts, second-round knockouts and whatnot, you don't really see what is truly there to work on. When you realize changes like them can’t be made, I think, respectfully, it’s time to move on.”

David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2. David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.