Raymond Ford says Gervonta Davis would be an ‘easier’ fight for Shakur Stevenson than his bout against William Zepeda earlier this month. Ford believes that Tank Davis’ low output style of loading up on single power shots would be a simple one for Shakur (24-, 11 KOs) to neutralize compared to the Zepeda fight.
Stevenson’s Pocket Fighting Style
“I expected that performance. He came in there and did what he was doing all camp, sitting in the pocket, beating guys up at their own game,” said Raymond Ford to Fighthype, when asked if he was surprised at how Shakur Stevenson beat William Zepeda.
Stevenson had to fight like that. Even if he ran, Zepeda would cut off the ring, hit him to the body shots, and make him look bad. Moreover, Turki Alalshikh had warned fighters ahead of time that he would no longer “Support’ fighters that use the Tom and Jerry style. Shakur’s bread and butter is fighting in the Jerry style, and always has since his amateur days.
“Shakur has been doing that. He just hasn’t been showing that in his fights, but in the gym, he’s been sitting in the pocket and stuff. I just got a glimpse to see some of the things that he can do,” said Ford.
Ford and Shakur have trained at the same gym in the past. Raymond said this about Stevenson: “[He’s] more of a friend and a big brother.” It’s unclear if Ford’s friendship plays a part in his views about him, and he would do against Tank Davis.
Zepeda Forced Pocket Fighting
“Yeah, also, William Zepeda is a fighter that isn’t going to allow you to box the whole night. So in points in the fight, you’re going to have to box, and points in the fight, you’re going to have to sit there in the pocket with him a little bit,” said Ford.
If Shakur ran, Zepeda would have hit him in the breadbasket, and that would have forced him to stop. Taking body shots while moving is difficult because it’s hard to brace for the punches. Stevenson was well aware of that and didn’t dare take the risk.
“I felt he fought the perfect fight. He got the job done. He looked beautiful doing it,” Ford said about Shakur in his fight against Zepeda.
What is Ford talking about? That wasn’t “beautiful” the way that Stevenson fought. He resembled a sparring partner, pinned against the ropes, trying to protect his head the whole time, and getting hit to the body. The number of body shots Shakur was getting hit with was countless. That was NOT beautiful unless we’ve changed our definition of beautiful to mean ‘ugly.’ Zepeda landed over 300 punches, with many of the connecting to the body.
Ford: Davis Easier Than Zepeda
“I think styles make fights. He can make the fight easier than the William Zepeda fight,” said Ford on how Shakur would do against Gervonta Davis. “Tank, he doesn’t throw as many punches for one. He [Stevenson] doesn’t have to worry about the output, getting tired, or anything like that.”
It would NOT be an easier fight for Shakur going up against Tank Davis than Zepeda, because he would be forced to run for 12 rounds. One slip up, and he’d get knocked out. If Stevenson ran, the crowd would boo, and Turki Alalshikh would likely be furious at ringside. He’d have paid Shakur millions, only to see him ignore his directive against Tom and Jerry fights, and stay on the move the entire fight.
“The only thing he has to worry about is one big shot. Tank is trying to land one big shot and set him up. I feel like Shakur is used to seeing that, and that’ll be easy for him,” said Ford.
Shakur has only fought one big puncher in his eight-year professional career, Edwin De Los Santos. So, you can’t say that he’s “used to seeing that” style of fighting. He ran the entire fight against De Los Santos and could have easily lost due to his low output.
De Los Santos landed all the hardest punches in each round. Usually, the judges give it to the fighter who lands the cleaner, harder shots. In that case, they diverted from that practice to give it to the A-side fighter, Stevenson.