Shakur Stevenson Adds Rehydration Clause to Conor Benn Fight Talk

Shakur Stevenson didn’t waste much time on Saturday night. He won his fight, took his belt, and then called out Conor Benn while the crowd was still excited inside Madison Square Garden.

In the moment, it felt like the fight was on track. Benn was in the building, stepped into the ring, and went back and forth with Stevenson while the cameras rolled, with Stevenson telling him to sign the contract and Benn firing right back. It played like a matchup that was already set, until the next day changed how it looked.

By Sunday, Stevenson made it clear that any fight with Benn would come with a rehydration clause. He said he wanted the same type of weight limit Benn used against Chris Eubank Jr. and did not leave much room for interpretation. No clause meant no fight.

Benn’s response was just as direct. He has no interest in agreeing to those terms, and that disagreement alone changed how realistic the matchup looks after the initial ring moment.

From Stevenson’s side, the position fits where he is right now. He is new at 140 pounds and would be facing a naturally bigger opponent, and he has said he is willing to take that fight only with limits in place. From Benn’s side, agreeing to another rehydration restriction would reopen arguments he has already dealt with, especially now that he is back at welterweight and focused on his own route forward.

So the moment now stands on its own. Stevenson said the words, Benn stepped into the ring, and the clip did exactly what it was supposed to do, but the conditions that followed matter just as much. Whether the fight actually happens comes down to whether either side is willing to move off its position, and at the moment, neither sounds eager to do that.