Promoter Bob Arum is optimistic that Shakur Stevenson will regain the form he previously had before his recent underwhelming performance against Edwin De Los Santos on November 16th during Formula One week in Las Vegas.
Shakur (21-0, 10 KOs) captured the vacant WBC lightweight title with a twelve round unanimous decision victory over the knockout artist De Los Santos (16-2, 14 KOs), but he was booed through most of the fight by the fans at ringside at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The way that the 26-year-old Stevenson fought, retreating, holding, and making it clear that he didn’t want to entertain the fans, raised doubts about whether he can ever become the superstar that Arum and his Top Rank promotional company hope he can be.
Will Shakur become a superstar?
Arum blames the defensive-minded Shakur’s lackluster performance against De Los Santos on a shoulder & hand injury, but he didn’t explain why he’s fought like that in the past when he’s faced decent-quality opposition.
“That always happens. I have such a history of boxing promoting superstars, and sometimes, for one reason or another, they don’t live up to their billing,” said Bob Arum to Fight Hub TV when asked about Shakur Stevenson potentially creating a promotional problem for him after his recent fight against Edwin De Los Santos failing to live up to his star quality during the prestigious Formula One Grand Prix week last November.
As long as Arum is fine with Shakur never becoming a marketable fighter, he’ll be a good belt-holder, albeit a dull one that is avoided due to his defensive, safety-first spoiling style of fighting.
Arum has got his work cut out for him to turn Shakur into a star because he’s not going to get any help from fighters like Gervonta Davis, Ryan Garcia, or Devin Haney the way Oscar De La Hoya assisted Floyd Mayweather Jr. to become a superstar.
Using an injury excuse would work if Shakur hadn’t been fighting like this since day one, which calls into question whether Arum has another Guillermo Rigondeaux type of fighter but even less entertaining them him. Rigondeaux was levels above Shakur in his ability to entertain because he had power and didn’t run & hold the way Stevenson does in his fights.
Perhaps Arum doesn’t remember how Rigodneaux fought, but he was a lot more entertaining than Shakur is now. Arum often complained about Rigondeaux not being an entertaining fighter, but Shakur is on another level.
The only difference is that Shakur can speak English and brag about himself nonstop. Rigondeaux wasn’t a braggart like Shakur, and he fought in weight classes that didn’t receive a lot of attention from boxing fans.
What are the future expectations for Shakur?
“Now, in Shakur’s case, he had ailments because he overtrained. He loves to be in the gym,” said Arum, continuing to carry water for Shakur. “He hurt his hand, he hurt his shoulder, and our office was constantly taking him to different doctors to patch him up.”
If Arum doesn’t expect Shakur to become a star, fight the contenders willing to face him and hold the WBC lightweight belt until he loses his speed and mobility.
It would be good for Arum to encourage Shakur to move up to 140 because he won’t become a star if he stays at 135, not with Tank Davis being unwilling to fight him.
Shakur has got the side to compete at 140 & 147, and he’ll have more opportunities to become a star attraction in those weight classes than if he remains at 135, toiling away in obscurity against the no-name opposition.
Devin Haney = Shakur lite
Look at what Devin Haney has done. He’s built a name for himself by beating older fighters and is now on the verge of getting a big payday against Ryan Garcia.
Some see Haney as a knock-off copy of Shakur Stevenson, but one that is selling for more than the original. Shakur needs to follow Haney’s route since he’s the genuine article, but he hasn’t made the right moves.
“De Los Santos is a pretty good fighter, but I know we didn’t see the best of Shakur, and indeed, the kid called me up in the morning after the fight to apologize for his performance,” said Arum.
“I quite understand what was happening because, for the weeks leading up to the fight, we didn’t know if he could even make the fight,” said Arum.
