Shakur Stevenson facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Shakur Stevenson
Stevenson at the 2016 Olympics
Statistics
Real name	Ash-Shakur Nafi-Shahid Stevenson
Rated at	Featherweight Super featherweight Lightweight
Height	5 ft 8in
Reach	68 in
Born	(1997-06-28) June 28, 1997 (age 27) Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
Stance	Southpaw
Boxing record
Total fights	22
Wins	22
Wins by KO	10
Medal record Men's amateur boxing Representing  United States Olympic Games Silver 2016 Rio de Janeiro Bantamweight Youth Olympic Games Gold 2014 Nanjing Flyweight Youth World Championships Gold 2014 Sofia Flyweight

Ash-Shakur Nafi-Shahid Stevenson (born June 28, 1997) is an American professional boxer. He has won world titles in three different weight classes: featherweight, super featherweight, and lightweight. Since 2023, he has held the World Boxing Council (WBC) lightweight title. As an amateur boxer, he represented the United States at the 2016 Summer Olympics and won a silver medal.

Amateur Boxing Career

Shakur Stevenson started his boxing journey at the Alexandria Boxing Club. He was very successful as a young boxer. He won the 2014 AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships and the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics.

In 2015, when he was 18, he won the U.S. Olympic trials. This meant he qualified for the U.S. boxing team for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In Rio, Stevenson won a silver medal. He lost to Robeisy Ramírez from Cuba in the final match. He was the top male boxer for the United States at those Olympics.

Professional Boxing Career

Featherweight Division

Starting as a Pro Boxer

Stevenson became a professional boxer on February 9, 2017. He signed a contract with Top Rank, a big boxing company. He also chose famous boxer Andre Ward to be his manager.

His first professional fight was on April 22, 2017, in Carson, California. Stevenson showed off his quickness and defense. He won his first fight against Edgar Brito. The fight was stopped early because Brito had a cut from an accidental headbutt. Stevenson was ahead on all the judges' scores.

Stevenson then fought at Madison Square Garden in New York City on May 20, 2017. He won that fight in the first round. His third fight was on August 19, 2017, in Lincoln, Nebraska. He won easily over six rounds. In December 2017, he fought Oscar Mendoza and won in the second round.

In 2018, Stevenson continued to win. He fought Juan Tapia in February and won by a clear decision. He showed how much his defense had improved.

Stevenson vs. Gonzalez: Winning a World Title

In August 2019, the World Boxing Organization (WBO) said that Stevenson and Joet Gonzalez should fight. The winner would get the vacant WBO featherweight title. The fight was set for October 26 in Reno, Nevada. It was shown on ESPN+. There was some tension between them because Gonzalez's sister was dating Stevenson.

Stevenson weighed 126 pounds, and Gonzalez was slightly lighter. On fight night, Stevenson outboxed Gonzalez. He won by a unanimous decision, meaning all three judges scored the fight for him. He became the first male boxer from the 2016 Rio Olympics U.S. team to win a world title.

In July 2020, Stevenson gave up his WBO featherweight title. He decided to move up to the super featherweight division.

Super Featherweight Division

Stevenson made his debut in the super featherweight division on June 9, 2020. He defeated Felix Caraballo by knockout in the sixth round in Las Vegas.

Stevenson vs. Clary

In November 2020, Stevenson fought Toka Khan Clary. The fight took place on December 12 in Las Vegas. Stevenson won the fight easily. All three judges scored the fight 100-90 in his favor, showing his complete control. Stevenson landed many more punches than Clary.

Stevenson vs. Nakathila

After winning his first 15 fights, Stevenson fought Jeremiah Nakathila on June 12, 2021, in Las Vegas. Nakathila was a highly ranked fighter. Stevenson knocked Nakathila down in the fourth round. He won the fight by a unanimous decision, winning every round. This victory earned him the WBO interim junior lightweight title. Some people thought Stevenson didn't throw enough punches, but he said he was being careful because of Nakathila's power.

Stevenson vs. Herring: Becoming a Two-Division Champion

In September 2021, it was announced that Stevenson would challenge Jamel Herring for the WBO junior lightweight title. The fight happened on October 23 in Atlanta, Georgia. Herring was the champion, but Stevenson was seen as the favorite.

Stevenson put on an amazing performance. He used his incredible hand speed to dominate Herring. He won by technical knockout in the tenth round. This made Stevenson a world champion in two different weight classes! He landed many more punches than Herring. After his win, Stevenson said he wanted to become a superstar in boxing.

Stevenson vs. Valdez: Unifying Titles

On January 16, 2022, talks began for Stevenson to fight Óscar Valdez, who held the WBC super featherweight title. The fight was confirmed for April 30 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Paradise, Nevada. Stevenson hoped this fight would make him a big name in boxing.

Stevenson used his jab and footwork to control Valdez. He even knocked Valdez down in the sixth round. Valdez couldn't find an answer for Stevenson's skills and size. Stevenson won by a unanimous decision, with all judges scoring heavily in his favor. With this win, Stevenson unified the WBO and WBC super featherweight titles. He also won the vacant The Ring super featherweight title.

After the fight, Stevenson proposed to his girlfriend in the ring!

Stevenson vs. Conceição: Moving Up in Weight

Stevenson's next fight was against Robson Conceição on September 23, 2022, in Newark, New Jersey. However, Stevenson weighed too much for the super featherweight limit. Because of this, he lost his WBC, WBO, and The Ring titles before the fight even started. The titles were only on the line for Conceição.

Stevenson still won the fight by a unanimous decision. He controlled the fight and even knocked Conceição down in the fourth round. Stevenson was warned and had a point taken away for throwing Conceição to the canvas. After the fight, Stevenson announced he would move up to the lightweight division. He said he could no longer make the junior lightweight weight limit.

Lightweight Division

Stevenson vs. Yoshino

In November 2022, the WBC ordered Stevenson to fight Isaac Cruz for a lightweight title chance. Cruz didn't agree, so the WBC then ordered William Zepeda, and then George Kambosos Jr., but they also passed. Finally, Shuichiro Yoshino accepted the challenge. This was Yoshino's first professional fight outside of Japan.

Stevenson fought Yoshino on April 8, 2023, in Newark, New Jersey. Stevenson won the fight by technical knockout in the sixth round. He landed 50% of his punches and dominated with his speed and boxing smarts. He knocked Yoshino down twice. This win earned him a shot at the WBC lightweight title.

Stevenson vs. De Los Santos: Becoming a Three-Division Champion

On August 26, 2023, the WBC ordered Stevenson to fight Frank Martin for the vacant lightweight title. Martin later pulled out, so Stevenson was set to fight Edwin De Los Santos instead. The championship fight took place on November 16, 2023, in Paradise, Nevada.

Stevenson won the fight by a unanimous decision, becoming a world champion in three different weight classes. However, the fight itself was very slow, with not much action. Neither boxer landed many punches. Fans even booed during the fight because of the lack of action. Stevenson later apologized to his fans and boxing idols for his performance.

In January 2024, Stevenson briefly announced his retirement from boxing at age 26 on social media.

Stevenson vs. Harutyunyan

Stevenson defended his WBC lightweight title against Artem Harutyunyan on July 6, 2024, in Newark, New Jersey. This was Stevenson's last fight under his contract with Top Rank. Harutyunyan had not fought in over a year.

Stevenson won the fight by a unanimous decision. The fight started slowly, but Stevenson took control with careful punch choices. He landed many more punches than Harutyunyan. Stevenson explained that it's hard to put on an exciting show when his opponent isn't trying to fight back much.

Signing with Matchroom Boxing

Stevenson turned down a big contract offer from Top Rank and became a free agent. In August 2024, he signed a new deal with Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing. He said he wants to fight the biggest names in the sport.

Stevenson vs. Schofield

Stevenson was supposed to defend his title against Joe Cordina on October 12, 2024, in Saudi Arabia. However, on September 11, 2024, it was announced that Stevenson had a hand injury, and the fight was canceled.

Later, William Zepeda was expected to challenge Stevenson, but Zepeda also got injured. Then, Floyd Schofield stepped up and asked for the fight. On December 2, 2024, it was officially announced that Stevenson would fight Floyd Schofield for the WBC lightweight title on February 22, 2025, in Saudi Arabia. Stevenson said he understands Schofield's hunger as a young fighter, but he believes his experience and smarts will lead him to victory.

Personal Life

Shakur Stevenson grew up in Newark, New Jersey. He is the oldest of nine children. He started boxing at age five, trained by his grandfather, Wali Moses. He looks up to famous boxer Andre Ward.

Stevenson has a daughter, born in 2021. He is engaged to Lyric Ragston, who is a rapper and singer known as "Young Lyric."

Professional Boxing Record

See also

• List of world featherweight boxing champions
• List of world super-featherweight boxing champions
• List of world lightweight boxing champions
• List of boxing triple champions