NEWARK, New Jersey – Shakur Stevenson’s dismissive demeanor during their press conference made Shuichiro Yoshino take notice Thursday.
The Japanese lightweight contender refrained from trading words with Stevenson (19-0, 9 KOs), though he left the stage at Prudential Center certain that his opponent Saturday night is a little overconfident. Yoshino (16-0, 12 KOs) expects to change Stevenson’s opinion of him in their 12-round, 135-pound main event at Prudential Center in Stevenson’s hometown of Newark (ESPN; 10 p.m. ET).
“In the press conference it seemed like he is underestimating me,” Yoshino told BoxingScene.com through his translator. “I’m gonna show in the ring Saturday night what I’m about.”
Tokyo’s Yoshino showed two of his countrymen what he is about in back-to-back bouts in 2022.
He knocked out fellow contender Masayoshi Nakatani in the sixth round of his last fight, which took place November 1 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.
Nakatani (20-3, 14 KOs) had only lost to former lightweight champions Teofimo Lopez and Vasiliy Lomachenko before Yoshino bloodied, dropped and stopped him. Lopez (18-1, 13 KOs) out-pointed Nakatani in their 12-rounder in July 2019 and Lomachenko (17-2, 11 KOs) beat him by ninth-round technical knockout in June 2021.
In the bout before he knocked out Nakatani, Yoshino defeated former WBO junior lightweight champ Masayuki Ito (27-4-1, 15 KOs) by technical decision. A cut caused by an accidental head-butt prohibited Ito from continuing in the 11th round of that bout, in which Ito trailed on all three scorecards (107-102, 107-102, 106-103) last April 9 at Saitama Arena.
Yoshino’s victories over Nakatani and Ito are the two most noteworthy wins of his seven-year professional career. Upsetting Stevenson would establish him as an elite lightweight, though, and move Yoshino into position to fight for a 135-pound championship.
The bout between Stevenson, 25, and Yoshino, 31, will determine the WBC’s mandatory challenger for Devin Haney or Lomachenko. Haney (29-0, 15 KOs), of Henderson, Nevada, will defend his IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO lightweight titles against Lomachenko in an ESPN Pay-Per-View main event May 20 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
“The level of opposition is gonna be higher [for Stevenson],” Yoshino said. “I’m a high-level fighter. I’m just gonna bring everything I’ve got to get the victory.”
Yoshino will box outside of Japan for the first time as a professional, but he isn’t the least bit intimidated by facing Stevenson in the two-division champion’s hometown.
“I don’t care where I’m at, because in the ring it’s just me and Shakur,” Yoshino said. “I want to show the world how I can box.”
ESPN will televise two 10-round bouts before Stevenson faces Yoshino in the 12-round main event.
Heavyweight knockout artist Jared Anderson (13-0, 13 KOs), of Toledo, Ohio, is set to battle Bronx resident George Arias (18-0, 7 KOs) in the cable network’s co-feature. Emerging lightweight Keyshawn Davis (7-0, 5 KOs), a 2021 Olympic silver medalist from Norfolk, Virginia, is scheduled to square off with Swedish southpaw Anthony Yigit (26-2-1, 10 KOs) in the opener of ESPN’s tripleheader.
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
