Shakur Stevenson says people hate watching his fights because “dominates” his opponents and they don’t like to see that kind of competition. WBC lightweight champion Stevenson (22-0, 10 KOs) believes that’s why fans hate watching him. it makes his matches so one sided.
What’s interesting is how resistant Shakur is to change. He’s not willing to adjust his style to become fan friendly and get the fights he wants. Stevenson would do himself a lot of good if he looked vulnerable against Floyd Schofield and went down two or three times in their fight on February 22. That was all it took for other fighters to deal with him.
It changes Shakur’s needs
– Stay in the pocket
– Throw more punches
– Focus on strength
– Stop running
Building a global star
He signed with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom last summer and will debut with his company against Floyd Schofield on February 22nd in Riyadh. Hearn believes he can turn Stevenson into a global superstar. However, that’s how the British promoter is when he signs anyone.
We saw the same from Hearn when he inked Jaron Ennis, Richardson Hitchins and Demetrius Andrade. None of these fighters have become stars, and Hearn seems to lose enthusiasm quickly when they fail to become the superstars he hoped for.
We’ll likely see that soon when Shakur performs poorly next month against Schofield. Hearn will stop mentioning Sakur’s name and will be invisible.
Shakur, 27, is oblivious to why he is disliked. He doesn’t engage, fails to stay in the pocket and struggles with fear when facing opponents at power.
The only guys Stevenson dominates are slow, old fighters with marginal talent and no power. He is often booed in his fights and doesn’t have the popularity or fighting style to get the big names to fight him.
Fan perceptions
“They don’t watch it just to watch the knockout. They will get the knockout if it comes. They’re going to love it, but they also like to see the science, and I appreciate them for that, too,” Shakur Stevenson told the talkSport Boxing for British fans.
“I feel more comfortable with it (labeled ‘boring’). You have to understand that every night, there is not going to be a war. A style like mine and a guy like me, I’m very dominant. I just go in and dominate. People don’t like to see someone come in and dominate.
“I’m used to being the young, hungry lion. Now, I have another young, hungry lion who is younger than me. I definitely don’t think he’s hungrier than me,” Shakur said of 22-year-old Floyd Schofield, who he fights on Feb. 22.
Shakur, a native of Newark, New Jersey, will have to start getting used to being the older fighter because he’s getting there in age, approaching 30. It won’t be long before he becomes one of the biggest politicians in boxing, and he’ll have a goal. his back. For fighters who rely on their mobility and reflexes, they don’t last long in the sport.
Career Path
“I’m trying to get big names. I’m trying to get William Zepedas. I’m trying to get Vasily Lomachenkos. If I can’t get those guys, I have to get the guys in line. This is a guy who used to call my phone all the time,” Shakur said.
Stevenson wouldn’t have had trouble getting the big names he mentioned if he wasn’t so much of a runner, he was afraid to participate and was frowned upon by the arenas. Fighters like Lomachenko, Zepeda and Gervonta Davis don’t want to have to chase a runner around the ring while the fans boo them. They would not be mocked.
It would be Shakur and it would be a cup of poison for the people watching. You can’t blame the top fighters for wanting nothing to do with Stevenson because he’s not coming to fight.
Reluctant to move up
“After we get past him (Scofield), I’d say Zepeda and Gervoda Davis,” Shakur said of who he wants to fight the rest of the year in 2025 after he defends against Kid Austin. “I’m very comfortable at 135 pounds. We’ll see after I make the division,” Stevenson said when asked if he’ll move up in weight like Floyd Mayweather Jr. did.
Shakur isn’t going to move up to 147 to take on the killers in this division because he can’t punch at 135, and he’s already shown that he’s scared to death of fighting power guys.
While there aren’t many sluggers at the top of the welterweight division today, fighters like Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, Eimantas Stanionis and Brian Norman Jr. they would feast on a weak, timid, finesse fighter like Shakur. She couldn’t run far enough to avoid him. They would bring in Stevenson, hunt him down, and destroy him in that order.
2025-01-16 22:18:00
