Shakur Stevenson: record, next fight and profile →
The championship unification matchup between Shakur Stevenson and Oscar Valdez features two undefeated junior lightweight titlists who are the best 130-pound fighters in the world.
Jeremiah Nakathila isn’t pleased with how he performed the night he fought Shakur Stevenson. The hard-hitting Namibian contender could’ve done so many things differently. By aimlessly following Stevenson around the ring and failing to cut it off, Nakathila made it easier for a defensive-minded Stevenson to carefully out-box him throughout their 12-round, 130-pound WBO interim title fight.
Shakur Stevenson feels like nobody can defeat him inside the ring right now, and that apparently includes multi-division titlist and boxing’s cash cow Canelo Alvarez.
By Keith Idec - Sample collectors from the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association have visited Oscar Valdez 11 times since he left the ring the night of September 10 at Casino del Sol in Tucson, Arizona. They first visited the unbeaten WBC super featherweight champion in his locker room following his 12-round, unanimous-decision defeat of previously unbeaten Brazilian contender Robson Conceicao.
Valdez, Stevenson Las Vegas Photos Gallery - The world's two best junior lightweights — WBC world champion Oscar Valdez and WBO king Shakur Stevenson — ignited their long-anticipated unification grudge match, which will take place Saturday, April 30 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas (LIVE on ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN+, 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT). (photos by Mikey Williams)
It was recently announced that WBC super featherweight champion Oscar Valde and WBO super featherweight champion Shakur Stevenson will meet in a unification showdown. The fight will take place April 30 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on the Las Vegas strip and will be televised by ESPN. The 24-year-old Stevenson captured a silver medal at the 2016 Olympic Games and is already a two-division champion just 17 fights into his pro career. Valdez (30-0, 23KOs) became a two-division champion when he stopped long time champion Miguel Berchelt last February. He successfully defended his title with a unanimous decision victory over Robson Conceicao in September in a fight that many observers felt should have been awarded to the Brazilian.
Number one contender Archie Sharp is hoping to turn the heat up on Shakur Stevenson with the help of his new promoter Probellum. The 26-year-old super featherweight has made no secret of his desire to take on Stevenson, who holds the WBO title and is being tipped to become a pound-for-pound fighter.
All of the “Is” are dotted and all of the “Ts” are crossed on contracts for Oscar Valdez and Shakur Stevenson. Promoter Top Rank Inc. and ESPN jointly announced Thursday that their 12-round, 130-pound title unification fight will take place April 30 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. BoxingScene.com and other outlets reported January 16 that the unbeaten champions were nearing a deal to fight that night.
Eddie Hearn thinks it reflects poorly on ESPN, the self-styled Worldwide Leader in Sports, to program a boxing card on the same night as the presumed greatest women’s title bout in history.
Oscar Valdez is ready to move forward with the biggest fight of his career. The reigning WBC junior lightweight titlist is signed and sealed for his anticipated title unification bout with current WBO 130-pound champ Shakur Stevenson. The showdown of unbeaten two-division titlists is targeted to take place April 30 on ESPN from MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, pending Stevenson and his side following suit and putting ink to paper.