Shakur Stevenson Predicts Greatness After Canelo vs. Berlanga Fight Card

Struggling at Lightweight, Stevenson Faces Physical Limitations and a Tough Road Ahead

Shakur Stevenson says he'll be remembered as ’one of the greats’ in boxing /

By Moses Ochieng

After watching the lackluster Canelo Alvarez vs. Edgar Berlanga fight card last Saturday night in Las Vegas, WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson took to social media, predicting that he would be remembered as “one of the greats” in boxing.

In the night's main event, the undisputed super middleweight champion Saul ‘Canelo’ Álvarez outpointed challenger Edgar Berlanga to retain his title. Making his eighth super middleweight title defense, the 34-year-old Álvarez (61-2-2) dominated the bout, using his experience and relentless pressure to wear down the 27-year-old challenger.

“My honest takeaway from watching the fights tonight is I’m so cold at this boxing [stuff] I’m going go down as one of the greats and one of the best to lace ’em up. I’m on a very, very, very high skill level, and these fighters can’t beat me.#ChasingGreatness,” Shakur Stevenson commented on X.
Shakur Stevenson, at 27, may not end up being one of boxing's greats, but it’s easy to see why he might think so after watching the lackluster Canelo-Berlanga card. It was like witnessing a car wreck in slow motion.

After suffering a hand injury that required immediate surgery, forcing him to withdraw from his scheduled title defense against Joe Cordina, his upcoming opponent, William Zepeda, is expected to defeat him in early 2025. And if a rematch follows, Zepeda may knock him out.

Should that happen, promoter Eddie Hearn will likely part ways with Stevenson. Since moving up to 135 pounds in 2023, Stevenson has struggled with hand issues, suggesting he may not have the physical capabilities to compete at this weight class. Due to his lack of power, he must load up on every punch with full force, but his hands seem too fragile for that approach.

The only available solution would be for Shakur to move back down to 130 or 126 pounds. However, he's outgrown both weight classes. He was always considered a weight bully in the featherweight and super featherweight divisions, but now he can no longer cut down to those weights without risking missing weight.