Shakur Stevenson proves his greatness

Teofimo struggled to find the target all night, landing only 15.4 percent of his total shots, and only 7 percent of his jabs connecting. Stevenson was masterful defensively and offensively, landing 44.4 percent of his total shots. Essentially defeating Teo with his jab, landing 105 of them. Which equates to more than Lopez’s entire offensive connection rate of 72 (Compubox).

Shakur’s dominant performance will elevate him among the elite in the sport after this career victory. He is now a four-division champion at the age of 28 and could potentially become welterweight champion in time.

Looking at the list of fighters in the 140-pound division or lower, it begs the question, is there anyone who can truly challenge him? Gervonta Davis is the first name that comes to mind, but since his boxing future is uncertain, it may be a while before we see him back in the ring.

Outside of Davis, there is little that can pose a challenge. After his win, Chris Mannix asked Shakur what big fight would keep him at 140 or higher? Shakur said, “Hold on, hold on, there’s a fighter right here, and he’s got me motivated too. Where’s Conor Benn? Hey, Conor Benn, we can hit it, boy. We can hit it, boy. I want the same rehydration clause that you put on Eubank Junior, and I want to fight.”

Conor Benn then came into the ring and started an exchange between the two. They went back and forth saying what they would do to each other in a potential fight.

At the post-fight press conference, Eddie Hearn was asked about a possible match between Shakur Stevenson and Conor Benn. Hearn responded by saying: “Conor Benn will have a massive challenge on his hands, but he’s ready for anything. I want to see Conor Benn win a world title. He also fought Rolly Romero tonight, which is a great fight for the welterweight division. Conor Benn will fight anyone; I have no fear of that.”

Hearn appears to be moving Benn towards a world championship fight against Rolando “Rolly” Romero, who holds the WBA welterweight title. A fight with Shakur would only materialize if there was a rehydration clause in the contract. Shakur was adamant about it when asked about it at the presser.

“If he’s not going to agree to that, then we’re probably not fighting. So, he’s just wasting time. We’ll see, but I’m a businessman at the end of the day. Like I said, he did a rehydration clause with Chris Eubank. Chris Eubank was in the ring, half dead. Why can’t he do the same thing?”

Conor Benn appears reluctant to add a rehydration clause to the contract, saying during an Instagram live stream yesterday that if Shakur wants one, he’ll have to pay for it. It would appear that Stevenson will not be moving into another division for the time being. He has shown his brilliance in the four divisions in which he has participated so far. His greatness will only grow forward from this point.