Shakur Stevenson finally secured the signature victories his career needed by defeating William Zepeda and Teofimo Lopez. Seven months later, those wins may have created a different problem. Has success made Shakur too selective for his own good?
Instead of operating like a World War I flying ace such as the Red Baron, who was credited with 80 aerial victories, Shakur has discussed one fight after another without getting anything signed. The best stretch of his career has been followed by one of its longest stretches of inactivity.
The back-and-forth with WBO welterweight champion Devin Haney illustrates the problem. Shakur wants a 144-pound catchweight, a condition Bill Haney rejected by insisting Devin should not drop below the 147-pound welterweight limit.
Shakur can take the fight at 147, pursue a mandatory position or move on to another opponent. Instead, another potentially lucrative fight has stalled because he wants terms the champion has little reason to accept.
That is almost the opposite of the old-school mentality. Fighters who scored career-defining wins often returned to work quickly, signing another fight and capitalizing on their success while the public was still talking about them.
Seven months is enough time to negotiate a deal, complete a training camp and fight again. Shakur has instead acted like an employee who had the best day of his career at the office and responded by taking an extended vacation.
Shakur spent years trying to reach this position. The question now is how many months of his prime he’s willing to sacrifice by ruling out opponents and demanding terms that keep fights from getting made.
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Last Updated on 2026/08/06 at 11:46 PM
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