Shakur Stevenson has been keen to secure a big fight for some time now and finally, an announcement has been made about his next world title fight and it is one that could have huge implications for his future.
Stevenson is one of the most precocious talents in the sport right now but has often struggled to get the big fights he craved. He grew so frustrated by this earlier in the year that he briefly announced his retirement before swiftly making a U-turn and admitting that he could not stay away from the sport he loves so much.
Last time out in November, the 2016 U.S Olympian cruised to a points win over Edwin De Los Santos but failed to win over the crowd, with many pundits since dating that he put in a dull showing and never truly got going.
He has since claimed he was fighting with an injury that meant he had to hold back and has vowed to put on a better showing next time out.
After mentioning plenty of names and even offering to step in to replace Ryan Garcia for his fight with Devin Haney when many were worried about whether Garcia’s mental state would mean he had to be pulled from the fight, it seems Stevenson has now finally got a date locked in.
Top Rank Boxing announced that Stevenson will be fighting back in his hometown of Newark on July 6 against Artem Harutyunyan, who lost in his last world title challenge against Frank Martin, who in July will be facing Gervonta Davis.
This defence of his WBC lightweight belt could well be Stevenson’s last with his promoter Top Rank should he not sign a new promotional deal, which could have big implications for who he is able to target next.
Without any of the issues around broadcasters, Stevenson will be much more free to negotiate with the likes of Devin Haney who fights on DAZN.
On the undercard, in a 10-round lightweight contest, Keyshawn Davis takes on the big punching Miguel Madueño, and the chief support sees WBC super featherweight champion O’Shaquie Foster face Robson Conceição.
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