Turki Alalshikh says Shakur Stevenson told him that he wants to rest his injured hand and wants to return to the ring in December or early 2026. WBC lightweight champion Stevenson (24-0, 11 KOs) said to him that he’d hurt his hand three days before his fight against William Zepeda last Saturday night in Queens, New York. Despite the injury, he still went through with the fight and won a wide 12-round decision.
Turki told him that Shakur wants to set up a fight between him and Gervonta Davis next. If not him, possibly Conor Benn. Both fights would create a lot of interest from fans, especially the Benn clash, because it would require Stevenson to jump up to 147 against a huge puncher.
Turki Alalshikh’s Aggressive Fight Push
“We pushed him in the last three months, talking about the Tom and Jerry thing. What happens? In the end, all the people like Shakur 100 times more than before,” said Turki Alalshikh to Thaboxingvoice about Shakur Stevenson being pressured into fighting aggressively for his fight against William Zepeda.
Stevenson definitely altered his Jerry-esque running fighting style for the Zepeda fight, choosing to stand stationary with his back against the ropes through most of the 12-round fight. He had to. With Turk’s Tom and Jerry comments along with fan criticism, he was left with no choice.
The reason Stevenson could do this is that Zepeda isn’t a big puncher and lacks hand speed. It was safe for him. Had this been someone with pop in their punches like Raymond Muratalla, Conor Benn, Abdullah Mason, and Floyd Schofield, Shakur wouldn’t dare fight stationary.
“He thanked me and sent a text message, saying, ‘Now, I understand you.’ He told me that he was coming from a serious injury,” said Turki about his conversation with Shakur. “For that, he took the risk and fought Zepeda. On Wednesday, three days before the fight, he suffered a small injury in the gym while he was training. He still competed because he wanted to fight.”
Shakur’s $7M Career-High Purse
Stevenson’s estimated purse for the Zepeda fight was a career-high $7 million. There was no way on Earth that he was going to allow his brittle hands to keep him from fighting. Losing out on that money would have been difficult for Shakur. The thing is, his hand problems are chronic.
So, he’s going to deal with this same problem for his next fight and likely the remainder of his career. Unless he gets an operation to give him bionic hands, he’s stuck with his hand issues until he retires. It might get worse for him as he hits his 30s. Shakur is an old-looking 28, and physically doesn’t look like the same fighter he was when he fought Jamel Herring in 2021.
Shakur Hand Injury Recovery Update
“After the fight, he said, ‘Turki, I want to rest my hand. Then maybe at the end of the year or the beginning of 2026, I will be ready. I am with you.” I said, ‘Shakur, I want to see you again, but I want a big fight. My dream is Tank. If Tank doesn’t happen, let’s dream. There are a lot of fights. Now, there is Conor Benn. There are a lot of options. Shakur, next time, there is no tune-up. We want a big fight,’” said Turki.
The comment about Turki not wanting Shakur to take a tune-up next is a strong message. He wants a quality opponent where the outcome isn’t a sure thing, like in his last three fights against Zepeda, Josh Padley, also known as ‘The Electrician’, and Artem Harutyunyan.
It might be a waste of time for Turki to push for a fight against Gervonta Davis, as he’s having issues with his personal life. It would be better to focus on matching Shakur against Conor Benn at welterweight if he’s willing to take the risk. The payday would be massive for Stevenson, and it’s a fight that would resonate both in the U.S and the UK.
Shakur’s Next Opponent Options
Conor Benn
Raymond Muratalla
Floyd Schofield
Abdullah Mason
Andy Cruz
“Shakur fought smart. He fought on the ropes similar to Mayweather, and he went around sometimes like Tom and Jerry. This is boxing. It’s the sweet science. It’s crazy to be in front of another fighter all the time. I understand. But it’s also boring and something you don’t want to see,” said Turki.
We saw Shakur move around during the later rounds against Zepeda, and the crowd booed him. They weren’t willing to put him with even a little bit of running from him.
Last Updated on 07/17/2025
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