“If you listen to the full interview, I said Raymond will have 1 more fight at 135, and Top Rank is working to lock in a date and opponent. And we’ll be at 140 after that. But if our next fight is against you, we can do it at any weight. We haven’t set anything up yet, so let’s make it happen,” said Robert Garcia on X.
This is where Shakur had a problem.
“Why would we do it at any other weight when he has a 135 belt IBF, and it would be for the ring magazine belt, that’s what would make it interesting to me. I don’t understand it,” Shakur said on social media in response to Robert’s comments.
Stevenson makes a clear argument. He believes the value of the fight is directly tied to the 135 pound title that Muratalla currently holds. By moving the weight or settling for a catchweight, the match loses its prestige and becomes just another match rather than a true championship fight.
Garcia is flexible for a reason. Muratalla has been a great lightweight for a while, and it clearly showed in the Andy Cruz fight. After rehydrating, he looked massive in the ring, closer to 140 pounds than a natural 135. Maintaining that size becomes a grueling task as the competition gets tougher, making the jump to 140 feel like a necessity.
The Andy Cruz fight definitely took some of the shine off Muratalla. He got the win, but it was messy. Cruz tagged him with right hands all night and looked like the better boxer for long stretches. If Cruz had a better engine and more pro experience, Muratalla probably walks out with a loss.
