After reluctantly giving up his WBO and WBC super featherweight titles due to his failure to make weight, Shakur Stevenson officially made the move to the lightweight division.
In his first official bout above the 130-pound limit, Stevenson (20-0, 10 KOs) proved that he belonged by stomping Shuichiro Yoshino this past weekend at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The win for the former Olympic silver medalist signified more than just his 20th professional victory, it also allowed him to call dibs on the next championship bout.
On May 20th, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, Devin Haney will place his IBF, WBO, WBC, and WBA lightweight titles on the line against Vasiliy Lomachenko. The winner of their upcoming clash will then be forced to deal with Stevenson in the immediate aftermath.
Jamel Herring, a recently retired former champion, has thoroughly enjoyed the back-and-forth banter between Stevenson and Haney. Ultimately, the former marine turned champion expects Haney to emerge victoriously from his bout against Lomachenko as the rightful winner. In the event that Haney (29-0, 15 KOs) opts against moving up in weight and heads straight into a showdown against Stevenson, Herring will gladly grab a seat ringside and take in the sights.
When asked to make his official prediction on their possible bout, Herring gnashed his teeth before making his selection.
“It’s hard to bet against Shakur,” said Herring to BoxingScene.com. “But I like Devin but I’m a pick Shakur, he beat me. I didn’t consider myself no slouch. I was a champion in my own right.”
As Herring alludes to, both he and Stevenson met in the center of the ring on October 23rd, 2021. Although Herring was seemingly in the prime of his career and proudly held the WBO super featherweight title, he was easily outclassed by Stevenson, eventually falling via 10th-round stoppage.
His experience with Stevenson, while not a pleasant one, allowed Herring to witness what it’s like to swap fists with a generational talent. Considering the scant success Herring enjoyed during their clash, he simply has a hard time envisioning Stevenson coming out on the losing end against Haney.
“Shakur is one of the hardest people to land a punch on. Devin has great defensive skills as well but it’s like Shakur is just different.”