WBC lightweight champ Shakur Stevenson has made it clear: although he almost certainly put on his most exciting ring performance in handing Mexican pressure fighter William Zepeda his first pro loss, this via wide decision, he doesn’t plan on fighting the way he did in the future. Never expect Stevenson to become a slugger, a man who looks to take the action into the trenches.
Stevenson, 24-0(11) did make a real effort at silencing the critics who have said numerous times that he is “safety-first” and that he doesn’t take chances in fights, and the southpaw was tagged with some shots as a result of his willingness to fight in close and fight off the ropes. Stevenson says it will be back to the boxing next time out.
Is This the Last Time We See Shakur Stand and Trade?
“I ain’t gonna lie – I wanna put on performances, but I also kinda took more punishment than usual,” Stevenson said, as quoted by The Ring. “So, I wanna get back on my boxing, make sure I don’t take a lotta punishment in there. So, nah, I don’t plan on getting hit no more. You know what’s crazy? Everybody in my corner, Andre Ward, Bud [Crawford], all them told me, ‘stay off the ropes.’ But I don’t know, I been kinda like feeling comfortable on the ropes sometimes. I feel like fighters open up on the ropes.”
Stevenson did show some superb counterpunching skills in fighting with his back to the ropes against the ever-advancing Zepeda, and it made the fight more fun to watch. But was this a one-off as far as Shakur is concerned? Maybe. Stevenson showed that while he can stand and, if not all-out trade, then at the very least hold his own in an up close and personal fight, this is a style he will not adopt full-time.
Just who Stevenson fights next will of course prove interesting, and maybe if it does turn out to be another pressure fighter in Conor Benn, Stevenson will again find himself standing his ground and liking it. Benn, if he does get this fight, will as we know do his utmost to make it HIS kind of fight.
