Shakur Stevenson Guarantees “Vintage Kur” Performance Against Schofield

WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson says fans should tune in for his February 22nd fight against Floyd Schofield in Riyadh to see “vintage Kur.”

What Shakur (22-0, 10 KOs) means by “vintage” stuff from him could be translated as code for him being on his bike, using his hit-and-not-get-hit style to win a points decision.

It would mean something if “vintage” Shakur was an exciting, brawling style that fans could look forward to, but he’s NEVER been that type of a fighter.

Stevenson has had an ancient fossil Mayweather-esque fighting approach since he turned pro out of the Olympics. He’s like a musician from the 1940s who came through a time warp into the 21st century.

Can Shakur Entertain?

For Stevenson, it’s important that he made it entertaining because this is Turki Alalshikh’s card, and there will be a lot of boxing fans ordering the contest, which will be shown live on DAZN.

If Shakur wants to headline some of the future shows instead of being buried on the undercard like he is with the February 22nd card, he needs to stay in the pocket and trade with the 22-year-old Schofield (18-0, 12 KOs). He needs to put his chin on the line to make it entertaining for the fans if he wants a higher spot on Turki’s future cards.

He wants fighters that entertain the fans, and Shakur doesn’t meet those standards, or at least he hasn’t in the past. It’s not too late for Stevenson to turn over a new leaf and become a pocket fighter, but I don’t think he can. He’s got too much rabbit in him.

“Kid Austin is 22. Tommy Hearns fought Ray Leonard at 21 [correction: Thomas ‘Hitman’ Hearn fought Sugar Ray Leonard for the first time at 22 years, 10 months on September 16, 1981]. I don’t get into that. Manny Pacquiao was a champion at 19 and Floyd Mayweather at 21,” said Stephen Edwards to Fighthype when asked if Floyd Schofield is too young at 22 to be fighting WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson.

“[Mike] Tyson was a champion at 20. Muhammad Ali at 22. Salvador Sanchez at 20. I could go down the list,” said Edwards. “Oscar De La Hoya, and Felix Trinidad. I think he was a champion at 20. Even Canelo and Inoue. They are two of the better guys in this era. They won championships at 20 and 21 years old.”

Stephen isn’t saying that those fighters were much better than Schofield, and they’d been looking outstanding before they won their first world titles. They weren’t struggling against lower-tier fighters the way Schofield has. That’s something that Edwards glosses over, with his mention of great fighters in the past who won world titles at an early age.

“Is it a tough fight? Yes. Is Shakur going to be a prohibitive favorite? Yes,” said Edwards on the Stevenson vs. Schofield fight on February 22nd. “Did Kid Austin struggle in his last fight [against Rene Tellez Giron]? Yes. I still give him [Kid Austin] credit for taking this fight. Sometimes, you want to take these fights in your physical prime.

“Sometimes youth overcomes a lot of things, and they seem confident,” said Edwards about Schofield and his dad, Floyd Sr. “Let them fight. I never say that. I never try to hold a guy back from wanting to fight. If you think you’re good enough, then go in there and fight. Do I think he’s going to win?

“I actually think Shakur is one of the better 10 to 12 fighters on the planet. Shakur is a special guy, also. But rugged, athletic guys tend to give smooth boxers hard fights. Shawn Porter gave everybody hard fights, and that’s who Kid Austin reminds me of the most. Tim Bradley is in the Hall of Fame. He was rugged, athletic, and gave everybody a tough fight,” said Edwards.

Is Shakur Overrated?

Stevenson is not one of the best fighters on the planet, and not even close. His style of fighting is not one of the best in boxing, and he’s not entertaining to watch. He’s a defensive guy, and that’s it. To be one of the best fighters in the sport, you have to balance offense and defense.

Shakur is only defensive. He’s 95% defense and 5% offense. His close win over Edwin De Los Santos last year showed that he’s not one of the best fighters on the planet because if he were, he’d have dominated him instead of being booed out of the T-Mobile Arena that night in Las Vegas. Edwards has got it wrong.

Schofield’s past chances of winning are by being aggressive, throwing power shots, and putting constant pressure on Shakur in every round of the fight. He’s going to have to be good at cutting off the ring because Stevenson will be moving constantly, as he always does, trying not to get hit.