Trainer Bernie Davis says the reason Shakur Stevenson chose Teofimo Lopez over 140-year-old Subriel Matias to fight for the belt is because he wants to fight a “superstar.” He rates Lopez (22-1, 13 KO) as someone who fits the “superstar” label.
(Source: Golden Boy)
Did Shakur play it secure at 140 pounds?
Insiders suspect Shakur (24-0, 11 KO) saw an obvious weakness in Teofimo’s game, noting his loss to George Kambosos and his controversial 140 wins over Sandor Martin and Jamain Ortiz.
Some fans consider Teo to be the weakest of the welterweight champions. They believe Shakur was calculated to be chosen over Matias, Gary Antuanne Russell and Richardson Hitchins.
“Shakur wants the best fights. He is a marksman and a defensive wizard. Can you solve this puzzle?” said coach Bernie Davies MillCity Boxing about Shakur Stevenson. “This guy is unbeatable.”
If Stevenson wants the best fighters, why did he decide not to fight Andy Cruz, Ernesto Mercado, Raymond Muratalla, Abdullah Mason or postpone the fight with Floyd Schofield? Shakur’s resume is average.
Hailing from Newark, Modern Jersey, Stevenson is certainly not unbeatable. We saw in his last fight against William Zepeda and his match against Edwin De Los Santos that he is beatable. Many fans made him lose to both fighters. He escaped De Los Santos and was booed from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas with his 12-round unanimous decision in November 2023.
The “Superstar” illusion at the age of 140
“Matias has already had a fight. Teofimo, they joined in. They’re newborn guys,” Bernie said when asked why Shakur wasn’t targeting WBA welterweight champion Subriel Matias and not Teofimo at 140. “These are newborn superstars. It’s a superstar fight. Shakur wants to fight the star.”
If Shakur wants a superstar to artificially judge him, he’s picking the wrong fighter because Teofimo isn’t up to the standard to be called one. Matias did lose to Liam Paro, but he should have won the fight if the referee had penalized the Australian for constantly pushing, holding and rabbit punching. Paro used all three tactics to neutralize Matias’ attack, and the referee didn’t even lift a finger to deduct points from him.
“He just beat Zepeda. He is [Stevenson] superstar. I need a fight with the stars. Teofimo also holds the Ring Magazine Champion title. He also has a great win over Lomachenko. He has a great win over Josh Taylor. So it’s a star fight. Subriel Matias is not a superstar,” Bernie said.
A better explanation, perhaps the real reason Shakur chose Teofimo over Matias, is that it’s an easier fight to win. Lopez has struggled since moving up to 140 pounds in 2022, and his career has only been spared from hitting rock bottom thanks to promoters Top Rank, who have supported him through careful selection of players.
“General population” test.
If they put Teofimo in jail general publicit would explode and be ready for the trash. Fighters who so far weighed 140 inches would have sunk Lopez’s career
Gary Antuanne Russell
Richardson Hitchins
Ernesto Mercado
Keyshawn Davis
Subriel Mathias
Albert Puello
Shakur would likely lose to all or most of these fighters. He doesn’t have the power to deal with these types of players and could barely handle William Zepeda. He doesn’t have the physical tools to beat top fighters at 140 or 135 pounds.
Indeed, Matias is not a superstar, but Berbie using that as a reason for choosing Shakur sounds 100% disingenuous or at least naive. Teofimo isn’t a superstar either. This is the fighter who lost to George Kambosos Jr. and deserved to lose the fight against Jamaine Ortiz on February 8, 2024.
The judges handed Lopez a unanimous decision after nearly 12 rounds, but many boxing fans saw it as a blatant robbery in which the A-side fighter prevailed over a lesser-known, less attractive guy.
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Follow Billam-Smith against Clarke with live round reports, scoring and the official result from London.
Chris Billam-Smith fights Cheavon Clarke over 10 rounds tonight on Sky Sports in the UK and Paramount+ in the US. The former WBO cruiserweight champion headlines Zuffa Boxing 12 at the Copper Box Arena on Saturday, November 7.
Billam-Smith vs Clarke Round-by-Round Updates
Live reports will appear here from the opening bell, tracking clean punches, knockdowns and which fighter controls each round.
● LIVE
Chris Billam-Smith vs Chev Clarke
2026-11-07 · 14:00 ET / 7:00 PM UK · Copper Box Arena, London · Paramount+, Sky Sports
Chris Billam-Smith0
AFTER0ROUNDS
Chev Clarke0
ROUNDChris Billam-SmithChev Clarke
Undercard Results
Featherweight Masood Abdulah (14-1, 8 KOs) scored two knockdowns to defeat Adan Palma (14-2) by an eight-round unanimous decision. The judges scored it 78-72, 77-73 and 76-74.
Abdulah dropped Palma with a short left hook in the opening minute, then used his jab and compact hooks to catch him coming forward. Palma fought his way back into the contest, landing heavy right hands in the fourth round that forced Abdulah to clinch.
A well-timed check left hook sent Palma down again in the sixth, slowing his attack and giving Abdulah more room to dictate the action. Abdulah worked behind his jab and continued finding the left hook over the final two rounds to secure the victory.
Vinnie Kemp (1-0, 1 KO) stopped Liam McElhinney (0-3) with a barrage of body shots at 2:33 of the opening round in their scheduled four-round middleweight bout. Making his professional debut, Kemp charged forward from the opening bell, throwing hard punches and goading McElhinney.
The referee briefly paused the action to warn Kemp about his verbals before allowing the fight to continue. Kemp resumed his attack, stalking McElhinney and driving punches into his midsection.
McElhinney bent forward and covered up against the ropes under the sustained body attack, prompting the referee to wave it off. Kemp’s aggression gave him a quick debut victory, although McElhinney offered little to test him.
When Does Billam-Smith vs Clarke Start?
Main-event ring walks: 🇺🇸 5 pm ET / 2 pm PT · 🇬🇧 10 p.m. GMTapproximately.
The undercard determines the final timing. Billam-Smith and Clarke headline a nine-fight show, with Denzel Bentley against Shane Mosley Jr. in the co-feature.
Main-card broadcast:
🇺🇸 2 pm ET / 11 am PT
🇬🇧 7 p.m. GMT
Preliminary coverage:
🇺🇸 12 pm ET / 9 am PT
🇬🇧 5 p.m. GMT
Sky Sports broadcasts the main card in the UK, with prelims available on its digital platforms. Paramount+ carries the prelims and main card in the US through a subscription, without a separate PPV charge.
Two June Stoppage Wins Set Up the Main Event
Both fighters arrive after punishing fights.
Billam-Smith beat Ryan Rozicki in June, with the Canadian’s corner withdrawing him after seven rounds of their Bournemouth contest. Clarke endured a rougher route on the same bill, recovering from two knockdowns before stopping Jack Massey.
Tonight’s contest carries no championship belt. For Billam-Smith, it offers a chance to strengthen his position at cruiserweight while beating an opponent who twice frustrated him.
Clarke’s second amateur victory came in the 2016 national elite championship final. Beating Billam-Smith in the paid ranks would add a former world champion to his professional record and strengthen his case for bigger fights.
Billam-Smith enters at 22-2 with 14 knockoutswhile Clarke brings a 12-2 record with nine stoppages. The experience gap amounts to ten professional contests.
Both cleared the scales on Friday. Billam-Smith weighed 199.5 lbs (90.5 kg) and Clarke 198.8 lbs (90.2 kg) for their cruiserweight headliner.
Zuffa Boxing 12 Undercard Results
Confirmed results and finishing details will be added alongside the matchups below as the bouts conclude.
Follow Billam-Smith against Clarke with live round reports, scoring and the official result from London.
Chris Billam-Smith fights Cheavon Clarke over 10 rounds tonight on Sky Sports in the UK and Paramount+ in the US. The former WBO cruiserweight champion headlines Zuffa Boxing 12 at the Copper Box Arena on Saturday, November 7.
Billam-Smith vs Clarke Round-by-Round Updates
Live reports will appear here from the opening bell, tracking clean punches, knockdowns and which fighter controls each round.
● LIVE
Chris Billam-Smith vs Chev Clarke
2026-11-07 · 14:00 ET / 7:00 PM UK · Copper Box Arena, London · Paramount+, Sky Sports
Chris Billam-Smith0
AFTER0ROUNDS
Chev Clarke0
ROUNDChris Billam-SmithChev Clarke
Undercard Results
Featherweight Masood Abdulah (14-1, 8 KOs) scored two knockdowns to defeat Adan Palma (14-2) by an eight-round unanimous decision. The judges scored it 78-72, 77-73 and 76-74.
Abdulah dropped Palma with a short left hook in the opening minute, then used his jab and compact hooks to catch him coming forward. Palma fought his way back into the contest, landing heavy right hands in the fourth round that forced Abdulah to clinch.
A well-timed check left hook sent Palma down again in the sixth, slowing his attack and giving Abdulah more room to dictate the action. Abdulah worked behind his jab and continued finding the left hook over the final two rounds to secure the victory.
Vinnie Kemp (1-0, 1 KO) stopped Liam McElhinney (0-3) with a barrage of body shots at 2:33 of the opening round in their scheduled four-round middleweight bout. Making his professional debut, Kemp charged forward from the opening bell, throwing hard punches and goading McElhinney.
The referee briefly paused the action to warn Kemp about his verbals before allowing the fight to continue. Kemp resumed his attack, stalking McElhinney and driving punches into his midsection.
McElhinney bent forward and covered up against the ropes under the sustained body attack, prompting the referee to wave it off. Kemp’s aggression gave him a quick debut victory, although McElhinney offered little to test him.
When Does Billam-Smith vs Clarke Start?
Main-event ring walks: 🇺🇸 5 pm ET / 2 pm PT · 🇬🇧 10 p.m. GMTapproximately.
The undercard determines the final timing. Billam-Smith and Clarke headline a nine-fight show, with Denzel Bentley against Shane Mosley Jr. in the co-feature.
Main-card broadcast:
🇺🇸 2 pm ET / 11 am PT
🇬🇧 7 p.m. GMT
Preliminary coverage:
🇺🇸 12 pm ET / 9 am PT
🇬🇧 5 p.m. GMT
Sky Sports broadcasts the main card in the UK, with prelims available on its digital platforms. Paramount+ carries the prelims and main card in the US through a subscription, without a separate PPV charge.
Two June Stoppage Wins Set Up the Main Event
Both fighters arrive after punishing fights.
Billam-Smith beat Ryan Rozicki in June, with the Canadian’s corner withdrawing him after seven rounds of their Bournemouth contest. Clarke endured a rougher route on the same bill, recovering from two knockdowns before stopping Jack Massey.
Tonight’s contest carries no championship belt. For Billam-Smith, it offers a chance to strengthen his position at cruiserweight while beating an opponent who twice frustrated him.
Clarke’s second amateur victory came in the 2016 national elite championship final. Beating Billam-Smith in the paid ranks would add a former world champion to his professional record and strengthen his case for bigger fights.
Billam-Smith enters at 22-2 with 14 knockoutswhile Clarke brings a 12-2 record with nine stoppages. The experience gap amounts to ten professional contests.
Both cleared the scales on Friday. Billam-Smith weighed 199.5 lbs (90.5 kg) and Clarke 198.8 lbs (90.2 kg) for their cruiserweight headliner.
Zuffa Boxing 12 Undercard Results
Confirmed results and finishing details will be added alongside the matchups below as the bouts conclude.
Tim Tszyu seeks to become Australia’s third multi-divisional boxing world champion when he competes for Erislandy Lara’s WBA middleweight title next month, and ahead of the action, trainer Robert Garcia has offered his thoughts on the fight.
Tszyu lost his WBO super-welterweight title in a defeat to Sebastian Fundora back in 2024 and twice failed to reclaim 154lb honours, both against Bakhram Murtazaliev and in a rematch with Fundora.
Since then, the Aussie has stepped up to middleweight and scored a career-best win over Errol Spence Jr earlier this yearand now, the 32-year-old could join lead trainer Jeff Fenech and Liam Paro as his nation’s third two-weight world champion, if he can trump 43-year-old.
Speaking with ProBox TVRobert Garcia, who trains a potential future Tszyu opponent in Vergil Ortiz, admitted that he is leaning towards the home fighter, but noted that Lara will not be phased by competing in the challenger’s backyard.
“We can probably lean towards Tim Tsyzu because he is fighting at home, in front of his hometown, but Lara is not the fighter that brings in a lot of fans following him.
“He doesn’t have a following, he is not one that is going to sell out arenas, so even if it is in the United States, it is likely that most of the people are going to be [there] for Tim Tszyu because Australians do travel and Tim Tszyu has a lot of fans.
“For Lara, going to Australia is like going to Las Vegas or going to New York because he never has that following anyways. Anywhere he goes, he is going to be against the crowd. So, I think for him it is going to be one of those performances where it doesn’t make a difference if he is going to Tim Tsyzu’s hometown.”
Tszyu-Lara takes place at the Cbus Super Stadium in Queensland, Australia on Sunday 13 December.
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