It's official. The brightest young star in boxing is turning pro, under the guidance of the managerial team of J. Prince, Andre Ward and Josh Dubin.
"It is an honor and a privilege to represent this young man. Andre, Josh and I know we have the next superstar in the sport," said Prince. "Shakur is not only a gifted fighter, but someone that has the ability to be an icon. Our first goal is to sign him with the right promoter. Then, we will be with him every step of the journey toward greatness."
Stevenson won a silver medal in the bantamweight division at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He entered the Olympics with a perfect 23-0 international record and is the first American male to win junior and youth world titles, as well as a Youth Olympic Games gold medal.
The oldest of nine siblings, Stevenson hails from Newark, New Jersey. Though he currently lives and trains in Virginia under the tutelage of coach Kay Koroma, he proudly represents his native city of Newark. Stevenson's grandfather, Wali Moses, introduced him to the sport and he's been boxing - and winning - ever since.
Stevenson commented, "I want to give a big thank you to my grandfather - big time - for getting me where I want to be as far as boxing and becoming the boxer I am today.
I want to thank Coach Kay for taking me in and coaching me and keeping me in the boxing environment when I moved away from Jersey. I'm excited for this journey ahead of me and my main goal is to be great!
I know I have a great team behind me with J. Prince as the head of it, working with Josh Dubin and Andre Ward. I know that these guys can get me where I want to be and I feel very comfortable with them behind me. I'm so focused and I promise to put 110 percent into making sure we become great as a team and I plan on becoming one of the best boxers on the planet - which is my main goal.
Now it's on me to prove to the world that I can be just as great as the legends before me and trust me, I'm up to the task!"