Eddie Hearn says he does not believe Shakur Stevenson’s size disadvantage against Teofimo Lopez will prevent him from defeating him in their possible fight in January 2026.
Hearn believes Shakur’s skills will allow him to handle WBO light welterweight champion Lopez’s size.
Shakur pushed back
“We talked about the size of Teofimo Lopez. He’s not a massive 140, but he’s still a decent size 140,” promoter Eddie Hearn told Brian Custer’s channel. “I told Shakur (Stevenson) ‘You’ll be the smaller guy in that fight.’ “No, I won’t.” I said, ‘You will be.’
Shakur may not be the smaller guy, but he will give a lot away in the power department. It counts for the same thing as giving away size. Lopez, 5’9″, has a one-inch height advantage over the 5’8″ Shakur, and a half-inch in reach.
“I said, ‘I don’t think it’s necessarily going to affect anything. I think you’re going to win the fight. That’s when it starts to be a real challenge when you’re fighting a bigger guy,'” Hearn said of his conversation with Shakur Stevenson who was the smaller fighter at 140.
Giving away size to Teofimo will most likely affect Shakur as he is used to being the bigger fighter with the longer reach. With him fighting Lopez, Shakur will be dealing with a guy his size but with a lot more power. So he cannot get away with fighting with his back against the ropes for 12 rounds as he did in his last fight against William Zepeda on May 2, 2025.
Teo built for this section
“It’s an interesting style combination. I don’t know how it will gel, the two styles. They’re both incredibly skilled. Teo is very difficult at times, and sometimes a bit weird with the way he fights. But he’s an incredible talent,” Hearn said.
Even though Teofimo and Shakur are roughly the same size, Teo is the much bigger puncher and more suited to the 140-lb division. Stevenson is forced to fight at 135 as he does not have enough strength to campaign against light welterweights. Staying at 140 will mean Shakur will have to compete with these wolves:
Ernesto Mercado
Keyshawn Davis
Gary Antoine Russell
Isaac Cruz
Subriel Mathias
Alberto Puello
Kevin Brown
Jamaine Ortiz
Kenneth Sims
Richardson Hitchins
Stevenson might beat some of those fighters, but it’s possible more than half will beat him. Teofimo is among them in terms of power and the trouble he will bring to Shakur.
Last updated on 23/10/2025
