Andre Dirrell says Shakur Stevenson needs to step up his game and learn how to fight in the pocket before he faces Gervonta “Tank” Davis. Dirrell wants Shakur to have a few fights to develop himself, learning how to fight in the pocket before he faces “regular” WBA lightweight champion Tank Davis (30-0, 28 KOs).
Hearn’s rush plans: cash-out deal?
Shakur’s up-to-date promoter, Eddie Hearn, wants him to fight Tank after signing the Modern Jersey native to a two-fight deal with Matchroom.
The Tank fight should be viewed as a pure cash grab. Hearn isn’t going to wait three fights for Shakur to learn through practice how to iron out the flaws Dirrell has seen in his game.
Matchroom promoter Hearn wants the Tank fight to take place in mid-2025 because if Shakur waits three more fights, he will likely be defeated by one of the challengers.
In three fights at 135 pounds, Shakur has shown that he is not suited for the weight class because he is too delicate in the strength department and cannot hold his own in the position. It would end badly for Shakur if he tried to follow Dirrell’s advice to improve his game because he would be vulnerable to attacks.
In Shakur’s last fight with the light-hitting Artem Harutyunyan, he was pummeled with punches to the head and body while standing in the penalty area. Although he avoided many of the punches, Shakur still got hit by Harutyunyan frequently, and you can only imagine what the results would have been if Tank Davis had been the one doing the punching.
Former IBF interim 168-pound champion Dirrell believes Tank could get on Shakur’s back and knock him out quickly due to his lack of strength, but he can predict Shakur (22-0, 10 KOs) will win if the fight goes 12 rounds and he stays on the move throughout the entire fight with Tank.
“Shakur just needs to fix a few things and learn to fight in the penalty area,” Andre Dirrell said on social mediasaying that Shakur Stevenson needs to develop even more before he faces WBA regular lightweight champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis next year.
“He has already shown that he can do it, but in the last fight he couldn’t handle it” [against Artem Harutyunyan]If I were Shakur, I would test the waters with a few guys and then jump in there with Tank. He’s got time for that,” Dirrell said.
Hearn’s Tiny-Term Strategy
The mad rush Hearn has put into getting the Shakur-Tank fight suggests he doesn’t think Stevenson is talented enough to remain undefeated for an extended period of time, even with bland matchmaking.
He almost lost to Edwin De Los Santos. He looked like pure poison as he was booed out of his hometown arena during his last fight with Artem Harutyunyan last July at the Prudential Center in Newark, Modern Jersey.
If fans have seen Shakur fight punchers Edwin De Los Santos and Jeremiah Nakathilia, it is clear that he will be the underdog against Tank Davis. It will be like watching a wolf chase a rabbit; the outcome will be a foregone conclusion.
Shakur may not get the Tank Davis fight, though, because the second fight on his two-fight deal with Hearn will be against William Zepeda. The guy has too much offensive firepower for Shakur to handle. Even if Shakur learned to fight in the pocket like Dirrell wants, he wouldn’t last more than three rounds against the Mexican slugger Zepeda.
If Shakur loses this fight or performs like he did against De Los Santos and Nakathila, there will be no interest in a Tank fight. Even with Hearn’s ability to promote non-contested fights, he would be overreaching himself trying to sell a Shakur-Tank fight under those circumstances.
Some believe Hearn is signing Shakur to a miniature, two-fight deal because he knows he’ll be worthless to him once Tank Davis destroys him. With a short-term deal, Hearn can avoid the time-consuming and exorbitant task of rebuilding Shakur’s career after Tank destroys him.
Shakur’s Low Popularity: The Problem of Rebuilding
Depending on how badly Tank beats Shakur, even a savvy promoter like Hearn might not be able to bring him back. If Shakur had the popularity of British boxer Anthony Joshua, it would be worth it for Hearn to put him in a cream bun fight for a few years to revive him from defeat.
He did that pretty well with Joshua, but the guy has a huge built-in fan base in the UK and they are willing to pay to watch him fight lower-ranked opponents. UK fans still support fighters when they lose and turn out to be screwed or never as good as people originally thought, like AJ.
In the US, Hearn can’t do that with Shakur because he’s not popular and will be even less popular when Tank Davis ends up with him. Fans won’t stick with Shakur after he loses to Tank because he’s not fun to watch and he’s never beaten a great opponent to win his three world titles.
Stevenson’s future: uncertain after Tank
Shakur is this era’s version of Adrien Broner, winning division titles over marginal opponents. In Broner’s case, he was at least entertaining to watch, and his press conferences were pure 24-karat gold before he became indolent and tired.
If Hearn tried to do the same thing to Shakur after Tank Davis killed him, fans wouldn’t buy tickets to see him fight. Hearn clearly knows what he’d be up against trying to get him back to a whole up-to-date level after losing to Tank, hence the short-term deal. If you believe in a fighter, you sign him long-term, but not if you have doubts about him.
Putting Shakur’s fights on PPV like he did with Joe Cordina on October 12th would be a disaster unless he faces a popular fighter like Devin Haney or Ryan Garcia. Those guys are not going to want to facilitate Shakur after he loses to Tank because he has no advantage since he’s not a PPV attraction.
Former unified lightweight champion George Kambosos approached promoter Eddie Hearn asking for more massive fights.
Kambosos has signed a co-promotional deal with Eddie Hearn, under which the Greek-Australian slugger will continue his association with DiBella Entertainment Inc. and his own company, Ferocious Promotions.
The 21-3 star will move up to the super lightweight division of Matchroom Boxing’s lively division. He aims to become a two-weight world champion in early 2025, and as part of the deal, a title fight is promised as long as he continues to win.
Since his stunning victory over Teofimo Lopez, Kambosos has never shied away from competing against the best. Those three losses on his resume came to Devin Haney [twice] and Vasily Lomachenko, all at home and all for world titles.
The 31-year-old is now set to face compatriot Liam Paro after defending his IBF title against Richardson Hitchins in December in Puerto Rico.
“I am thrilled to be working with Matchroom Boxing. I am excited to have signed a three-way promotional cooperation agreement with my long-time promoter DiBella Entertainment Inc. and Ferocious Promotions,” Kambosos said.
“I made great success and history when I moved up the Matchroom shows by winning my UK elimination fight against Lee Selby. The most noteworthy and unforgettable is my victory against Teofimo at Madison Square Garden in Up-to-date York to become the 135-pound world champion.
“I am officially announcing that I will be moving up to 140 pounds and signing with Matchroom will ensure my continued success and the legacy I want to leave in the sport of boxing.”
Hearn, who adds an experienced campaigner to his stable, added: “I am delighted to welcome George to the team. George’s victory over Teofimo tore up the script and showed that George was the man for the massive time. He has proven to be a huge attraction in Australia and one of the real driving forces behind the rapid growth of boxing Down Under.
“The 140-pound division is full of massive names and massive potential fights. Adding George to the mix only elevates the level, and a possible fight with Liam Paro is a truly appetizing prospect. If Liam manages to win in a great fight against Richardson on December 7th [the fight could be on].
Lou DiBella, who has worked with Kambosos for years, said: “I’m glad I was able to make a deal with my antique buddy Eddie to work with George Kambosos Jr. and Ferocious Promotions.
“Throughout his career, George has been a fighter who has never shied away from a challenge, and now he wants to test himself against top junior welterweights.
Matchroom works with top 140-pounders, including George’s compatriot Liam Paro, and, like DiBella Entertainment, is heavily invested in Australia.
“It’s a natural partnership,” added the Up-to-date Yorker.
One of the hottest topics surrounding Mike Tyson’s return at the age of 58 was the possibility of the boxing legend scoring a knockout of Jake Paul.
WBN has weighed in on this topic several times, questioning the validity of five-second training clips that revealed nothing about Tyson’s abilities at this overdue age. One of the most intriguing observations during the preparations was the opinion of UFC commentator Daniel Cormier.
Speaking on his show “Funky and the Champ,” Cormier reflected on Tyson’s social media videos and offered an informed opinion on the meaning of the clips.
“I understand that [he is in amazing shape at 58]and I understand what he is saying [he feels as though he can compete]– Cormier said. “And I agree that when he hits the pads with Rafael Cordeiro, it looks like there’s still something left in him.
“But then I watch Jake Paul fight Mike Perry. I saw Jake Paul get overwhelmed to the point where he started to feel uncomfortable. It looked like Mike Perry had a chance. But Jake has a reserve tank he can go to and benefit from because he’s 28 years ancient. Then he comes back and finally finishes Mike Perry.
“At the beginning of the fight, Mike Perry gets beaten up and dropped. He looks trained and unmatched. This worries me because what if it looks like a 58-year-old man fighting a 28-year-old man while Mike can’t employ the backup tank to stay and compete with this newborn kid? I think it’s a failure for Jake Paul because if you beat Mike Tyson, everyone will love him.
He added: “What if Mike knocks him out? It’s over. Everything is ready. This would be the backfire of all time. If he gets knocked out, nothing like that has ever happened in the history of the sport.”
Unfortunately for Tyson, this revenge backfired spectacularly, as the former heavyweight champion’s return was the only event that bombed. Tyson had nothing left twenty years after he had nothing left in his tank and no desire to box in his mind.
Paul parlayed this into a money-making scheme that would forever be a success for him and his company, but would be poorly received by the die-hard boxing fraternity.
Cormier’s words resonate, especially after what happened in the ring when Mike Tyson struggled to shift into first gear, warning former fighters thinking about returning after 50.
Lauren Price MBE will defend her world title for the first time on Saturday, December 14 at the Exhibition Center in Liverpool, while the Welsh champion plans to stage an all-British unification clash with welterweight rival Natasha Jonas, which will headline the Collision Course that night.
Price defends her WBA welterweight title against undefeated Colombian challenger Bexcy Mateus on the same night as Jonas attempts to unify the IBF and WBC titles with Ivana Habazin as part of BOXXER’s ‘Collision Course’ fight night, which can be seen live and exclusively on Sky Sports in the UK UK and Ireland and Peacock in the US.
Price MBE (7-0, 1 KO) made history with an excellent performance, defeating former undisputed welterweight world ruler Jessica McCaskill in front of her fans in Cardiff in May.
Price, the first Welsh boxer to win Olympic gold, once again entered the record books by becoming the country’s first world champion in just her seventh professional fight. The 30-year-old from Ystrad Mynach, who has yet to lose a round as a professional, will now defend her world titles for the first time as she focuses on dominating the welterweight division.
Mateus (7-0, 6 KO), ranked No. 5 in the WBA rankings, is undefeated in the professional ranks and has won all but one of her seven fights by knockout. The 29-year-old from Bogota, fighting outside her native Colombia for the first time, will now have her first chance at global fame, with her goal to dethrone Price and take the top spot in the welterweight division.
Lauren Price said: “I’m excited to defend my belts and complete what has been an crucial year for me. I have full respect for Mateusz. I will prove that I am the best in the division and I will not let anything or anyone stand in my way of being undisputed.”
BOXXER Founder and CEO Ben Shalom said: “It’s a massive night for the women’s welterweight division with three world champions competing. Natasha Jonas returns to her hometown for a mandatory unification fight against Ivana Habazin, and Lauren Price defends her world titles against undefeated challenger Bexcy Mateus. The fight for the undisputed continues. If Natasha and Lauren win on December 14, it will set the stage for a massive “Battle Of Britain” world title unification fight next year.
There’s reason to celebrate as BOXXER delivers a Christmas cracker to end the year. In addition to the world championship fights between Natasha Jonas and Lauren Price, fight fans can expect a gala full of drama and entertainment.
Undefeated Irishman Stephen McKenna (15-0, 14 KO) will face English champion Lee Cutler (14-1, 7 KO) in an invigorating super welterweight fight for the silver WBC International title.
McKenna impressed fans in his three-round fight against Joe Laws last August at Oakwell Stadium in Barnsley. The two struck out in the first round, then McKenna began to apply the pressure, losing Laws three more times and maintaining his undefeated record after a third-round stoppage.
English cruiserweight champion Viddal Riley (11-0, 6 KO) returns to action from a rib injury that has kept him out of the ring since a career-best victory over Mikael Lawal in March. Riley will be looking to shake off the ring rust as he takes on high-profile opponents in the recent year.
Undefeated Chorley super middleweight Mark Jeffers (18-0, 5 KO) scored an explosive fifth-round knockout victory over Darren Johnston in May and will be looking to bring more drama to Liverpool’s Exhibition Center as he goes in search of his 19th professional win.
Mason Cartwright (20-4-1, 8 KO) from Cheshire, a former two-time British title challenger from Ellesmere Port, will be counting on local support as he returns to the title track.
After signing a promotional contract with BOXXER, local star Frankie Stringer (8-0, 1 KO) can achieve his third victory in 2024, when he returns in front of his fans in Liverpool. The 23-year-old lightweight fighter is a player of the notable city team Rotunda ABC, and his manager is former world champion Liam Smith.
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