Paulie Malignaggi says Shakur Stevenson may have to take a wage reduction by hosting part of his wallet to attract WBC -Tuss -entry lightweight champion William Zepeda to fight against him. He feels that Shakur (23-0, 11 COs) is avoided by the top guys at 135 because he is so good.
Compensation proposal
To get those fighters like Zepeda (33-0, 27 food) to fight against him, he will have to surrender a part of his wallet. Maligaggi thinks that a victory by Shakur over Zepeda will “force” the bigger fights against Gervonta Davis to happen.
More likely, it will work around. An impressive victory for Stevenson over Zepeda will close the door forever for a fight against Tank Davis, especially if Shakur runs against the Mexican Slugger all night.
He will have to move around the whole battle, because if he stands and fights against Zepeda, he will be chewed. In the first six rounds of his recent battle against Zepeda, Tevin Farmer took up a lot of punishment, and the only reason he was not stopped is that he has an excellent chin.
Shakur’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, has the money to invest in him if he is willing to use some of his company’s dough to get Zepeda. For a popular fighter like Zepeda, it’s going to be expensive. All Hearn has to do is offer Zepeda $ 5 millionHe will agree and then hope that Shakur does his part without being out of the venue. Hearn is a nagging and tight fist, will result in Stevenson existing in the shadows as long as he stays with the match room.
If he is struggled by the fans as against Edwin de Los Santos and Jeremiah Nakathilia, he can forget about the tank.
Saudi -money away
The money Shakur thought there would be some of the Saudi is no longer there after his last battle against Josh Padley on February 22 in Riyadh. Some fans believe that the Saudi gave up on Stevenson after that ominous performance against the part -time boxer Padley, who struggled in a very dull battle.
‘This is a disappointing way with the way Shakur was done in this business. I feel like he’s an excellent fighter, ‘Paulie Malignaggi said Fighting typeTalk about how Shakur Stevenson couldn’t get the fighting he wanted. “He’s probably the best lightweight in the world.”
Shakur did not hit anyone on a lightweight to receive the credit that Maligaggi was sloping on him. Stevenson’s fight against Edwin de Los Santos must have been a draw or victory for De Los Santos. The judges gave it to Shakur, but many fans believe it was because of his popularity. He wasn’t supposed to lose.
Besides the victory, Shakur’s victories came against low-level fighters: Josh Padley (the electrician), the inactive Artem Harutyunyan, who came from a loss, and little well-known Shuichiro Yoshino.
I am the black sheep of box i love it
– Shakur Stevenson (@shakurstevenson) April 14, 2025
Avoiding factor
“There is perhaps a situation where he may have to take a little wage reduction to get the big fights and to try to settle with his actions,” says Malignaggi. “It sucks, I know. Only in box you can be so good that you are avoided. No other sport does it. ‘
The match probably won’t happen unless Shakur dominates most of his wallet to make it worthwhile for William Zepeda to fight against him. Golden Boy and Zepeda, of course, saw Shakur’s fight against De Los Santos, and they will know that they see the competition that winning a decision against him will be impossible.
If the judges give Shakur rounds for light bumps, hold and run, Zepeda won’t have a chance to win. For Zepeda to have a chance, the battle in the neutral area in Mexico must be performed.
“If you’re so good, they have to go through you to be the best, or they can’t be the best. In boxing you can be so good that you are sometimes avoided if you are not in the right situation, and everyone plays ball without you, ‘says Malignaggi.
The problem is that Shakur did not show that he is ‘so good’ for the top grade fighters at 135 to fight against him. What he has shown is that he is a runner -up, a boring runner -up, and is regularly caught up when he faces opposition with any form of doll in their blows. He is not popular and many light years away from the realization of PPV status.
He is actually only known for his social media activity on X. Shakur’s current promoter, Eddie Hearn, has failed to turn him into a star and has not yet invested the dough to get the battles he needs to become a household name by William Zepeda and Gervonta Davis.
Stevenson’s problem
“It’s crazy for me because I think Shakur is the premium lightweight in the world in a lightweight section that has some good fighters,” Malignaggi said. “I don’t know what the answer is. Maybe take a little wage cut to try to get the Zepeda fight and then Zepeda dominates. This will force the larger battles in this way, because then you will have dominated a man like Zepeda.
“I don’t know anymore. It’s such a stupid business. There’s a crazy amount of money in it. It moves in strange ways. People play favorites. There’s a lot of politics, because there’s something if there’s a lot of money, but it’s getting so frustrating,” Maligaggi said.
https://youtu.be/ihcs_whpaic?si=hry1Teijbun-fqsh&t=12
Last updated on 04/14/2025
