“I saw Gary Antuanne Russell beat Rayo pretty easy, and I would rather fight a Gary Antuanne Russell than a Rayo.”
Shakur also listed the opponents he hopes Zuffa can deliver during his run with the promotion.
“Imagine it being like Teo, then Devin, then Tank,” Stevenson said. “If I could get all three of them, I don’t even know what else I would do after that. Retire.”
Those are exactly the kinds of fights fans want to see. The question is whether Stevenson has reached the point in his career where he should be dictating Zuffa’s matchmaking.
There is no questioning Shakur’s talent. He’s one of boxing’s most gifted technicians. But resume and commercial value are important when a fighter begins telling a promoter which opponents he will and won’t accept.
At lightweight and light welterweight, Shakur’s signature wins have come against William Zepeda and Teofimo Lopez. Before that, his recent opposition included Josh Padley, Artem Harutyunyan, Edwin De Los Santos and Shuichiro Yoshino. Those are respectable victories, but they don’t represent a record filled with the best fighters from the 135- and 140-pound divisions.
The business side is also worth considering. Shakur has become more popular after his wins over Zepeda and Teofimo, but he hasn’t yet established himself as a proven North American pay-per-view attraction on the level of Ryan Garcia, Canelo Alvarez or Gervonta Davis.
That’s why his comments about Rayo are noticeable. Zuffa has made a major investment in Shakur, yet one of its own recognizable fighters isn’t even under consideration. Instead, Shakur wants the promotion to pursue expensive outside fights with Haney and Tank Davis.
If Stevenson had already built a resume filled with victories over the division’s elite while proving himself as a consistent commercial draw, he’d have a much stronger case for dictating Zuffa’s matchmaking.
Based on his accomplishments to date, it’s fair to ask whether the better first step would be helping Zuffa build its own roster before expecting the promotion to deliver ONLY the biggest names in boxing for him.
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