By: Hans Themistode
During Shakur Stevenson’s relatively brief career, the 24-year-old has produced some incredible performances.
In 2019, Stevenson dominated the old title challenger, Christopher Diaz. To close out his year, Stevenson let Joet Gonzalez beat Joet Gonzalez for the first time in his career. To start his 2021 campaign, Stevenson thoroughly unboxed Jamel Herring, before roughly stopping him, leading to Stevenson’s first world title at 130 pounds. Last weekend, on April 30, Stevenson believed he had built another masterpiece.
That night, Stevenson carefully dissected Oscar Valdez. After five rather messy rounds, Stevenson nearly finished the show, putting the rough and rugged Mexican native onto the canvas in the sixth round, before heading to a unanimous decision victory. As Stevenson reflects on his entire career, he admits that his performance against Valdez was one that stood out.
Stevenson told Sky Sports Boxing: “It was one of my best performances. “Oscar Valdez is a tough fighter. He is a fighter who came to win.”
As Stevenson evades, Valdez is both defiant and relentless throughout the night. However, thanks to Stevenson’s defensive excellence, Valdez’s efforts were ultimately in vain.
Before Stevenson made his way through the crowd in support of Valdez, the former Olympic silver medalist had become agitated with the constant chatter surrounding the match against Valdez. At the age of 31, with an undefeated athletic record after 30 fights in his career, Valdez successfully defeated a guy who is a boxer.
While Stevenson is still considered a sizable favorite, many believe his upcoming bout is simply too wide a bridge for Stevenson to cross at this point. Yet despite the dubious voices, Stevenson warned his opponents of what was to come. Now, with what Stevenson considers a career-defining victory, the current unification champion at 130 pounds believes his name should be mentioned among the best boxers in the world.
“I hear a lot of people asking if this moment is too much for me. I told you, I shine in my brightest moments. I am a superstar and I will continue to be a superstar. I feel like I deserve every pound.”
