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Shakur Stevenson steps into greatness with a victory over Teofimo Lopez

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Eric Bottjer

Shakur Stevenson knocked on the cubicle-sized door – quite loudly – ​​and moved inside. He is currently renting a club. A few more performances, like Saturday’s fight against opponents of Teofimo Lopez’s caliber, will make him an owner in this area.

The 2020s are the golden era of boxing. Tyson Fury is an all-time great heavyweight fighter. The man who beat him twice is arguably the greatest cruiserweight of all time (can you imagine Oleksandr Usyk vs. Evander Holyfield in the overdue 1980s?). Japan’s Naoya Inoue is arguably the greatest bantamweight to ever walk the earth. Terence Crawford could compete with any welterweight in history. Canelo Alvarez, even though he was in the red, was in the top 10 middleweight five years ago. Like ever in the top 10.

You can – and should – put these five fighters on any list of the 10 greatest boxers of all time (in their respective weight classes). Shakur isn’t here yet. But if he stays focused and fights against the best competition, it will happen. It’s pure pleasure to watch a 21st century athlete operate 20th century boxing skills. It’s worth watching the “boxer” stay in the pocket and beat the “puncher” to see it happen (pay-per-view money in my case – the weather was too cool for my bones in Florida).

I’m betting on Lopez. Not because I thought he would win (I didn’t), but because the +240 odds for him to win didn’t reflect the talent gap. There was no talent gap, at least physically. Lopez has legitimate power and was certainly the hardest hit Shakur has faced – in his life. Lopez also has world-class speed.

I didn’t ignore the talent gap when it came to boxing IQ. I knew Shakur was taller. I also knew that Shakur had a definite advantage in his camp and corner (head coach). But I couldn’t get past Lopez’s path to victory, which seemed quite uncomplicated to me (though also very challenging to execute): you force Shakur to do what he doesn’t feel comfortable doing. You force him to fight when he doesn’t want to. This is a strategy that a wise coach considers against EVERY opponent.

I imagined Lopez forcing Shakur back and, more importantly, taking away his jab (not literally taking away the punch itself – taking away his advantage in that regard).

Elementary step one: move it back. Lopez tried this at first. He tried it with a jab. Each time, Shakur simply took a step back, each time observing his opponent, each time measuring the distance, and each time measuring any differences in that distance. This is what great warriors do.

A great opponent would see the folly of continuing this failed strategy and recalibrating. You still want to move your man back. You know that when you step forward with one foot, he will take a step back. Therefore, when you take a step forward, you KNOW he will take a step back. You don’t have to throw punches to achieve this. You just take a step, knowing, at least initially, that you’re not in any danger because at that point Shakur isn’t punching when you moved forward earlier. You know you can move him at least a step back without punching or being punched. And you can deceive him with your head, arms, and arm movements. Damn it, your eyes. That’s what great warriors do.

Lopez is not a great fighter, he is just a great talent. He couldn’t make Shakur trade, make him feel uncomfortable, make him feel any danger, because he couldn’t even do the uncomplicated task of moving his man when he wanted to move him. Shakur didn’t need a plan B. Because Lopez didn’t have a plan A.

I won’t go into the instructions Teo heard in the corner. The polite conclusion is that Lopez needs a fresh coach. Instead, let’s be positive and honor Wali Moses, Shakur’s grandfather, who was a high-class cornerback: composed, competent and inspiring confidence in his fighter.

Who will be next for Shakur. Probably Ryan Garcia if Ryan gets rid of Mario Barrios later this month. But FIGHT for Shakur is impossible right now.

Gervonta “Tank” Davis, like Shakur, knocked on the door to greatness, entered (knocking out Ryan Garcia and Rolly Romero and defeating Isaac Cruz), but evicted himself.

Tank life is a wreck. If he were to seek solace in the only place he has control (in the ring), he is still undefeated, even though he is 31 years aged, in great shape and his skills are extraordinary. He also brings a real trainer to the dance and, like Shakur, sells tickets.

Tank Davis vs. Ryan Garcia and Shakur Stevenson vs. Teofimo Lopez are fights worth watching on pay-per-view. Shakur vs. Tank is a great fight. And there is money for it. Let’s hope someone helps Tank outside the ring so that when he returns he can show us the answer everyone is asking right now: Can anyone beat Shakur Stevenson?

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Boxing

World champion claims Conor Benn pulled out of fight after ‘setting up the whole deal’

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World champion says Conor Benn pulled out of fight after the ‘whole deal was set up’

Conor Benn could be ready for a world title fight against Ryan Garcia, but there is one reigning world champion who claims the Briton recently pulled out of a title shot even though “the whole deal has already been done.”

Benn made his Zuffa Boxing debut earlier this month. defeating Regis Prograis in a 150-pound catchweight bout – his first fight at sub-154 pounds in four years – and now he looks ready to fight for world titles at welterweight.

Although his position as mandatory challenger for the WBC title put him in line to face Garcia, WBA 147-pound champion Rolando Romero claimed that Benn had withdrawn from the title fight.

I’m talking to Fighting Hub TV“Rolly” explained why he doubted the Garcia fight would happen and revealed that he expected to fight Benn until “The Destroyer” changed his mind.

“Conor Benn waived me, we had the whole deal done, we were supposed to fight on May 30 in Fresh York for my world title, and then he just disappeared out of nowhere.

Conor Benn was there begging to fight me. By the way, we already had everything planned, but he’s in Fresh York trying to create all this fuss and stuff – he did it for advantage. Same with this, he can do this with Ryan too to gain strength.

“They’re out there trying to do all this stuff, I don’t do this imitation beef. That throws me off, you go and do all this imitation beef and then you come here and act like a gigantic, tough guy and then you run away and don’t fight.”

“Maybe he was doing it with Ryan because Ryan would have knocked him out cool.”

Garcia and Benn could collide this summer in Las Vegas when Benn returns to the welterweight division in a direct world title fight.

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Jermell Charlo picks Tim Tszyu to defeat Errol Spence Jr

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Image: Jermell Charlo Picks Tim Tszyu to Beat Errol Spence Jr

Charlo then launched into a longer explanation, questioning what version of Spence would emerge after his years outside the ring and claiming that style favored Tszyu.

“He has little defense. Errol will come in softly. He doesn’t really move his head. Tim moves his head. He throws a few stone hay shots. “I just follow my fighting style and be realistic.”

Jermell looked like a war veteran and described the fight, giving reasons why he chose Tszyu to beat Spence.

For years, these two towers were the “Twin Towers” of Derrick James’ gym in Dallas. They shared celebrations, sweat and secrets. The problem is that Errol was very vocal about these sessions, essentially telling the world that he was “teaching” Jermell.

For a guy like Charlo, who carries enormous pride and has built his “Lions Only” brand on being the alpha, having a former teammate claim dominance over him is a stain he can’t wash off in a sanctioned fight.

Having never fought professionally, these gym stories are the only narrative that exists and you have to wonder if it’s still eating at him.

Charlo also indicated the location, with the fight expected to take place in Australia.

“He’s going to Australia there. I see Tim Tszyu winning that fight,” Jermell said.

X is having a field day because Charlo looks like a man who sat in a dim room and watched Spence’s training videos over and over again. Fans call this the “villain arc” energy. He spoke quickly, louder and louder, and seemed personally interested in the answer.

During the prophecy, Jermell had a diabolical look in his eyes, as if he were performing a technical exorcism on his elderly rival.

When he has such wide eyes and high energy intensity, he tends to rely on his “Only Lions” personality, which thrives on perceived disrespect. In this case, the disrespect is the years in which Errol Spence Jr. he claimed to be the “substantial brother” at the gym.

“I don’t have to fight Errol Spence and I don’t care about fighting Errol Spence,” Jermell said.

Jermell is essentially using Tim Tszyu as a proxy. Since Charlo hasn’t fought at 154 pounds since 2022, he needs Spence to lose to someone else to prove that the elderly era (the Derrick James era) is over. If Tszyu destroys Spence, it will validate Charlo’s technical criticism and make his inactivity look like a calculated move rather than a decline.

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Boxing

Roy Jones Jr sums up Tyson Fury’s chances of beating top-ranked Lennox Lewis

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Roy Jones Jr sums up Tyson Fury’s chances of beating a prime Lennox Lewis

Britain has produced some great heavyweights in recent years, ending an almost century-long curse and seeing success in the division ever since. Predicting the outcome of the clash between two of the best fighters in the country, Lennox Lewis and Tyson Fury, Roy Jones Jr said it would be a “great fight”.

Bob Fitzsimmons became the first British world heavyweight champion in 1897, and he and Jones remain the only two fighters in boxing history to have won both middleweight and heavyweight world titles.

However, Great Britain struggled for success in the division after the Fitzsimmons fight, unable to claim heavyweight supremacy until Lennox Lewis became WBC world champion in 1992. Britain has since crowned its title 11th world heavyweight championFabio Wardley, who follows in the footsteps of Fury and Anthony Joshua.

In an interview with Grosvenor CasinoJones said he would give Lewis an advantage over the “Gypsy King” if they met in their prime.

“Tyson Fury vs. Lennox Lewis? That would be a great fight, but my first thought was Lennox Lewis because of his power. But my second thought was also that Tyson Fury was great at making adjustments. I would go with Lennox Lewis.”

At least one heavyweight world title is expected to remain in a Briton’s hands for some time, with Daniel Dubois scheduled to face another Briton, Fabio Wardley, for the WBO belt next month.

In the meantime, we hope 21-year-old Moses Itauma can continue Britain’s success for many years to come, with the youngster considered by many to be the hottest prospect in boxing.

As for Fury, he is focused on the UK-wide megafight with Joshua – their own ‘Battle of Britain’ after Lennox fought Frank Bruno in 1993.

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