The super-featherweight division may be about to have a unified champion by the end of April.
WBO champion Shakur Stevenson and WBC champion Oscar Valdez are close to a deal to fight one another on April 30 in Las Vegas according to Dan Rafael.
Stevenson (17-0, 9 KOs) annexed the strap from Jamel Herring back in October with one of the best performances of 2021. The 24-year-old is never shy to talk of his ambitions in the sport and a win over Valdez would be the next step in his quest for greatness.
Valdez (30-0, 23 KOs) produced one of the knockouts of 2021 when wiping out the challenge of Miguel Berchelt nearly a year ago. The first defence of his title in September wasn’t as memorable. The Mexican found a way to get past Olympic gold medallist Robson Conceicao, but the event was overshadowed by Valdez testing positive for the banned substance Phentermine 10 days prior to the fight. Eventually the WBC cleared the champion to defend against the Brazilian.
“We all want the winner of Shakur Stevenson and Jamel Herring. Let’s do it,” Valdez said post-fight.
The promoter of both fighters Bob Arum appears to have delivered.