“Shakur Stevenson Willing to Face William Zepeda if Gervonta Davis Finalizes Vasyl Lomachenko Fight“
In a bold move indicative of his hunger for elite competition, Shakur Stevenson has set his sights on William Zepeda, provided Gervonta Davis seals the deal with Vasyl Lomachenko. Fresh off a scrutinized unanimous decision win against Artem Harutyunyan, Stevenson aims to prove his mettle against Zepeda, currently ranked as the top lightweight contender across all major sanctioning bodies.
Newark defense expert jumped in with, “Where is William Zepeda?”
Stevenson’s desire for the Zepeda bout stems from his belief that it could be a tougher challenge than facing Vasyl Lomachenko. In an interview with Cigar Talk’s Naji, Stevenson asserted, “If Tank is set to take on Lomachenko, why can’t I face the tougher fight? Zepeda brings a different level of intensity with his punch volume.” Despite the potential challenge, Stevenson expressed uncertainty about Zepeda’s willingness to step into the ring with him.
Shakur Stevenson confidently responded, stating, “If Tank [is] going to go fight Lomachenko, why can’t I go fight, maybe the harder fight? We don’t know.”
Stevenson said, “That can’t be true though… Him and Oscar [are] close. They [are] close enough where you could go sit down with him, [and ask,] ‘Can we make this fight happen? What I got to do to make this fight happen?’”
The buzz around Stevenson-Zepeda intensifies amidst ongoing negotiations for a late-year showdown between Davis and Lomachenko, with promoter Bob Arum actively pursuing the matchup. While Stevenson sees Zepeda as a significant test, obstacles remain, particularly involving Zepeda’s promoter, Oscar De La Hoya.
So, Oscar De La Hoya hopped on X to say, “Shakur, you said nobody wants to fight you. Well, check out William Zepeda on Saturday night on DAZN. He is begging me [that he wants] to fight you.”
Stevenson cast doubt on De La Hoya’s commitment to making the fight happen, recalling past instances where his name was used in promotion without subsequent action. Addressing De La Hoya’s earlier claims, Stevenson challenged, “You keep saying my name, but where’s the fight? Are you serious about making this happen?”
Stevenson wrote, “Yooo @OscarDeLaHoya, I still haven’t heard anything yet about Zepeda fighting me on July 6. How can you say my name over and over and not make the fight happen next? Were you using me to promote your fighter fight or?”
Despite the verbal jousting, a concrete agreement between Stevenson and Zepeda has yet to materialize, leaving fans to speculate on the likelihood of the matchup coming to fruition this year.
Oscar later responded with, “Zepeda is fighting soon for the second time this year, I’ll talk to your promoter third quarter of this year.”
