Shakur Stevenson says he has a “chip on his shoulder” and a lot to prove to those who doubt him heading into his fight against William Zepeda on July 12th. It burns him up that fans are “sleeping” on him, believing he’s fake, and that he won’t be able to do to Zepeda (33-0, 27 KOs) what he’s done to his other opponents during his eight-year professional career.
Fans Doubt Shakur Stevenson
WBC lightweight champion Shakur (23-0, 11 KOs) turned 28 today, and fans are overlooking him in this fight because of the mostly weak opposition he’s fought since moving up to 135. Fans expect a loss to Zepeda because Stevenson hasn’t shown the willingness to engage when fighting punchers.
However, Turki Alalshikh’s comments this week about being “very upset” if Zepeda knocks out Shakur because he has “big plans” for him have fans questioning whether William will be on the receiving end of a controversial decision unless he knocks him out.
So, Zepeda is viewed by some fans as having only one path to victory: a knockout. That further cements the view some fans have that Shakur is just a creation to generate money and a fake in reality. That would explain why he’s not been matched against fighters like Andy Cruz, Raymond Muratalla, Abdullah Mason, and Keyshawn Davis. They would ruin everything.
“I got a chip on my shoulder. I got something to prove. A lot of people are sleeping on me. A lot of people don’t think I’m that guy. They don’t think that I’m that guy I’ve been my whole entire career,” said Shakur Stevenson to DAZN Boxing, discussing how some fans feel he’s overrated going into his title defense against William Zepeda on July 12th.
Shakur’s Most Notable Wins
Edwin De Los Santos
Jamel Herring
Oscar Valdez
Robson Conceicao
Joet Gonzalez
Artem Harutyunyan
Those fighters were not in the same league as William Zepeda and the other top lightweights. The only notable win of Shakur’s career is De Los Santos, and he fought poorly against him in their 2023 fight. I watched the fight and had Edwin winning 8-4.
That was easily the worst performance of Steveson’s career, and he was fortunate to be given a 12-round decision. It looked like a draw because De Los Santos landed the harder, cleaner shots and was the one pushing the fight.
William Zepeda: Shakur’s Big Test
“Sometimes it just takes a little minute to adjust and adapt. I’m adjusting and adapting well. July 12th, it’s going to be a statement,” said Shakur.
Stevenson believes his career will soar to new heights by beating Zepeda in a statement fight, comparing it to how Terence Crawford’s popularity rose after his win over Errol Spence Jr. in 2023. There’s a big difference here.
Zepeda wasn’t in a terrible 100 mph car crash, didn’t start training camp weighing 190+ lbs, and hadn’t had eye surgery. He hasn’t sat out of the ring for 14 months. These were all things that Errol had going against him when he fought Terence.
So, Shakur using that fight as an example doesn’t work for the Zepeda fight, because this is a much different situation.
Is Shakur Stevenson Overrated?
People believe that his promoters have moved him like a chess piece, strategically positioning him to avoid a loss and missing out on a big mega-millions fight against Gervonta Davis.
In other words, Shakur has been artificially promoted to appear better than he is by his promoters, pitting him against fighters like Josh Padley, Artem Harutyunyan, and Shuichiro Yoshino. Fans wonder why Stevenson hasn’t been matched against these fighters by his promoters:
- Andy Cruz
- Raymond Muratalla
- Abdullah Mason
- Jadier Herrera
- Keyshawn Davis
- Ernesto Mercado
Last Updated on 06/28/2025
