Shakur Stevenson is a star.
He’s an attraction. He’s an elite, world-class fighter.
And he reminds me as much of a young Floyd Mayweather Jr. as anyone has since Floyd himself.
So before anyone misconstrues and calls me a “hater” or worse, reread those lines.
But now that you’ve read them, read this, too:
Let’s not get ridiculous, shall we?
The win on Saturday night was a strong debut in the lightweight ranks and the sixth-round stoppage Stevenson got in front of his hometown crowd was certainly credible. But based on what I’ve heard and read so far, you’d have thought Shuichiro Yoshino was the second coming of Roberto Duran.
His 16-0 record was good enough, sure. But out of those 16 wins would anyone like to guess how many were over guys holding an independent top-15 ranking at the time they fought?
I’ll give you a hint. It’s a nice, round number. Literally.
That’s right. Zero.
Though the likes of Masayoshi Nakatani and Masayuki Ito are familiar enough to those of us who’ve spent inordinate amounts of quality time around hand wraps and mouthpieces, let’s not forget that the two of them had combined to go 4-4 in their last eight fights before Yoshino beat them last year.
So it’s not as if he arrived in North Jersey having handled a slew of streaking world-beaters.
Does that mean those wins were worthless? No.
But does it mean Stevenson did anything truly beyond what he was expected to do – or what any other elite-level lightweight would have done – against Yoshino? Also no.
Styles make fights. And it was surely no accident that Stevenson’s first foe at 135 was a guy willing to come forward and wing punches, which is precisely the style the Newark native shines brightest against.
No one’s suggesting that he ought to have jumped right from a 130-pound frying pan into a lightweight fire. In fact, there’s zero concern with making Yoshino the first step on a long and lucrative run at a third world title. But based on the reaction to one fight against one mid-tier opponent, it seemed he’d already stepped beyond Duran, Mayweather, and Alexis Arguello on the division’s all-time list.
Maybe he’ll get there. But he’s not there yet.
As for how it can eventually happen? Well, let’s just say the Tuesday crew has some ideas.
Naturally, a showdown with Devin Haney is on everyone’s mind given their shared promotional allegiances and Stevenson’s post-Saturday suggestion that the four-belt champ would be “easy work.”
Whether his assessment is correct or not is anyone’s guess. But given the typical simmer time for truly big events and the fact that Haney is already on the schedule for a high-profile defense against Vasily Lomachenko next month in Las Vegas, there’s probably little (read: no) chance it happens in 2023.
In the meantime, it’d be nice to see Stevenson duel with an increasingly relevant Frank Martin, but the absence of promotional common ground between their camps probably means such a fight will be staged on social media long before it’s in an actual brick-and-mortar venue.
That more likely turns the tune-up needle toward a guy like Denys Berinchyk, an unbeaten Ukrainian ranked third by the WBO behind Lomachenko and Stevenson and whose promoter – Frank Warren’s UK-based Queensbury operation – has a collegial relationship with Top Rank.
He beat French veteran Yvan Mendy to defend the WBO’s mid-tier international title in his most recent fight on the Fury-Chisora III show last December and said Bob Arum approached before that win with the suggestion that a victory would get him in the mix for a subsequent Stevenson date.
A sexy choice? No.
More accomplished and relevant than Yoshino had been when he got the nod, though, and more interesting than his Japanese counterpart given a proclivity for making ring walk fashion statements – including Super Mario, The Hulk, a teddy bear, and, most recently, a full Ukrainian military ensemble.
Channeling a video game hero and/or ziplining into the venue won’t ensure any more success against Stevenson than Yoshino had – in fact, his style seems equally ripe for the ex-Olympian’s picking – but it’d be more fun for the ESPN crew of Bradley, Ward and Tessitore to dissect alongside the beatdown.
Beyond that, who wouldn’t want a date with either Haney or Gervonta Davis this time next year, presuming “Tank” gets by Ryan Garcia when the two of them get together next week in Las Vegas?
The guess here is Davis by KO, and that the significance of an event with Stevenson might be enough for them to find a spot in the middle of the promotional street that’d fit both names on the marquee. And if that’s not the case, the Haney fight is still an easy one to make under the shared Top Rank banner.
Last but not least, there’s always an opportunity to settle an old score.
Stevenson and Robeisy Ramirez were mere youngsters at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, where Ramirez’s split-decision win cost Stevenson his long-anticipated bantamweight gold medal and still stands as his most recent ring loss. Now 29, Ramirez has bounced back from a desultory pro debut with 12 consecutive victories, including a one-sided verdict over Isaac Dogboe to net a title at 126.
Both men are promoted by Top Rank, and both have seemed at least amenable to the idea of a rematch, though Stevenson is toiling these days nine pounds higher on the weight-class ladder.
“If it came down to it,” he said on Boxing with Chris Mannix, “I would definitely be down.”
A lot to look forward to, no question.
But until he takes another step or two, whaddya say we hold off on coronation?
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This week’s title-fight schedule:
No title fights scheduled.
Last week’s picks: 3-1 (WIN: Teraji, Inoue, Rodriguez; LOSS: Akhmadaliev)
2023 picks record: 11-3 (78.6 percent)
Overall picks record: 1,261-411 (75.4 percent)
NOTE: Fights previewed are only those involving a sanctioning body’s full-fledged title-holder – no interim, diamond, silver, etc. Fights for WBA “world championships” are only included if no “super champion” exists in the weight class.
Lyle Fitzsimmons has covered professional boxing since 1995 and written a weekly column for Boxing Scene since 2008. He is a full voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Reach him at fitzbitz@msn.com or follow him on Twitter – @fitzbitz.