Via Adam Baskin: WBC/WBO super featherweight champion Shakur Stevenson will fight September 23, potentially against three-time Olympic champion Robson Conceicao, in Newark, New Jersey.
ESPN’s Mike Coppinger is reporting the news of Stevenson’s undefeated (18-0.9 KOs) return to the ring three months from now.
Negotiations are still underway for Stevenson against the next 2nd WBC & #2 WBO 130-lb Conceicao (17-1, 8 KOs) contender.
2016 Olympic gold medalist Conceicao suffered the only loss of his career last September in a 12-round unanimous decision to former WBC super featherweight champion Oscar Valdez in a close-quarter match.
Valdez overcame it with scores of 117-110, 115-112 and 115-112. The fight was almost razor-sharp, with some boxing fans feeling like Conceicao should have been awarded the victory.
The score of 117-110 for Valdez is embarrassingly bad, as that has fueled the fire about how terrible the score is to the competition.
Conceicao fought well enough to deserve a close victory, but for a referee to score it for Valdez with a wide 117-110 scoreline was disappointing.
Since that game, Conceicao has bounced back with a 10-round win over Xavier Martinez last January.
For his part, Shakur, 24, is on a unanimous decision in 12 innings before winning over Oscar Valdez in a unified clash on April 30 in Las Vegas.
The scores are 117-110, 118-109 and 118-109. Valdez lacks the strength, speed, bravery and boxing ability to overcome Shakur’s advantages.
Interestingly, Stevenson chooses at the age of 130 to fight opposition that will essentially not be able to continue his career.
For Shakur to become a major star, he will need to accept the bullet and move up to lightweight to take on talented boxers like Devin Haney, Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis, Vasyl Lomachenko and Ryan Garcia.
Obviously, Stevenson wouldn’t be able to become a superstar if he stubbornly stayed at the featherweight division, up against the likes of Conceicao, Joe Cordina, and Roger Gutierrez.
Shakur wants to stay at 130 long enough for him to be the undisputed champion, meaning he will be league-bound for another year.
As a result, we probably won’t see Stevenson move into lightweight until 2024 as he won’t get a unified clash against both 130 lb champions Cordina & Gutierrez this year.
Shakur is a fighter who relies on his reflexes and hand speed. These types of fighters tend to go downhill as their speed disappears on them in their late 20s to early 30s.
If Stevenson was smart, he’d move fast with his career and not focus on trivial accomplishments like trying to become the undisputed champion in the featherweight super by beating champions. Lesser known are Gutierrez and Cordina.
Casual US boxing fans have never heard of those two champions, and even heavyweight fans aren’t too familiar.
Stevenson should look at the bigger picture and focus on chasing more notable names by moving up to 135 to pursue fights with Tank Davis, Haney, Ryan Garcia and Lomachenko.
