Shakur Stevenson and his new promoter Eddie Hearn are holding a press conference in Los Angeles next week to discuss Shakur’s next fight with Matchroom against Joe Cordina on October 12th in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The date will be announced soon.
A confidence booster and a stepping stone
Stevenson (22-0, 10 KOs) and former IBF super featherweight champion Cordina (17-1, 9 KOs) will share the card headlined by unified light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev and WBA champion Dmitri Bivol at the Kingdom Arena in His Excellence Turki Alalshikh’s Riyadh season event.
Hearn has not said whether he plans to re-sign Shakur to a long-term deal after his one-fight bout with Cordina is over. He says he wants to turn himself into a world star, but it’s unclear who he can match him with outside fighters that aren’t Matchroom.
The enticing fights for Shakur would involve fighters like William Zepeda, Gervonta Davis and Vasily Lomachenko. Those guys aren’t with Hearn, but they’d be willing to fight Shakur if the money was right.
The plan is to put Shakur in this confidence booster against Cordina to help boost his share with fans and then beat him against William Zepeda. Then if Shakur wins those two, try to make a deal with Gervonta Davis.
Stevenson’s ego and pride
Shakur would likely have to sign with PBC in order for him to get the tank fight, and even then it would depend on the negotiations. Stevenson’s ego and pride can lead him to overestimate himself and lose the tank battle.
The problem is that Shakur feels he is on the same level as Tank Davis because of his three division world titles and his WBC belt. Those things mean nothing. Shakur still can’t sell and is nowhere near Tank’s level.
“With Matchroom and Riyadh Season, I am teaming up with a promotional force that matches my world-class talent,” Shakur said. “We will be unstoppable in and out of the ring, and I will continue to show my dominance in the sport of boxing for many years to come.”
Hearn’s Ham-Handed Promotional Strategies
Hearn is excited about Shakur’s new signing, as he was with Demetrius Andrade when he signed him to Matchroom in 2019. He failed to learn from the past and steered Shakur’s career in the same direction.
When Hearn signed Andrade, he was excited about the potential, but instead of capitalizing on it, he matched up against three British fighters, and his popularity failed to take off.
Hearn looked surprised when Andrade failed to catch on with fans. Now Hearn is making the same mistake with Shakur by comparing him against a British fighter, which will not increase his popularity among American fans. This will hurt Shakur’s popularity because he will probably look bad.
Sharp rounds in the bank today 🔪
— Shakur Stevenson (@ShakurStevenson) August 22, 2024
