There aren’t a ton of fighters out there who are anxious to jump into the ring with Shakur Stevenson. Of course, the former Olympic silver medalist has made it look incredibly easy no matter who he’s lined up against.
After taking care of business against Oscar Valdez in April of 2022, Stevenson saw his unified championship reign come to an end thanks to his struggles on the scale. In desperate need of a reprieve, Stevenson (20-0, 10 KOs) officially made the move up in weight. Meeting him at the lightweight door roughly one month ago, was Shiuchiro Yoshino.
As the former two-division world titlist began picking his man apart at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, Jamaine Ortiz pulled out his pen and paper and began taking notes. Although Stevenson would go on to hand Yoshino a lopsided beating, resulting in a sixth-round stoppage victory, Ortiz revealed that the pound-for-pound star is someone that he would love to share the ring with next.
“I’m definitely pressing for it,” said Ortiz during an interview with YSM Sports Media. “I want the fight.”
Ortiz, 26, has been patiently twiddling his thumbs since producing the finest year of his young career. Following a close but clear unanimous decision victory against Jamel Herring to kick off his 2022, Ortiz was ushered into a showdown against former lightweight kingpin, Vasiliy Lomachenko.
Though he had countless moments, the Puerto Rican native was forced to swallow the bitter pill of defeat. Now, after sharpening his skills in the immediate aftermath, Ortiz is hoping that Top Rank, the promotional thumb which he fights under, will slide a contract across his desk at some point. In the end, the goal for Ortiz is to be standing opposite Stevenson before 2023 comes to a close.
“Hopefully by the end of the year, we can get it on.”