Thursday's, in this corner of the Universo Pugilistico, are all about my sack-- my bulging, bulbous, aching sack-- and the gooey, salty truth contained within. So...sit back, close your eyes, pull back your hair, and get ready for this week's money shot of wisdom. This week we have comments/questions regarding Shakur Stevenson, William Zepeda, and Nate Diaz-Jorge Masvidal.
Shakur Done Wrong
Hi Magno.
Shakur Stevenson is gone from Top Rank and ESPN and I say good. They did Shakur wrong with the way they’ve been representing him these last few fights as his contract was running out. On Saturday, they really went all out in the disrespect. Showings fans leaving his fight was classless and petty as fuck. It was disgusting to be honest.
I know you already talked about where Shakur might go in free agency, but my question to you is about ESPN and Top Rank. Where did they drop the ball with Shakur and why couldn’t they do anything with him? What part of the blame goes to Shakur and what part goes to the promoter and network?
By the way, I think he’ll move on and get those big fights he couldn’t get at TR/ESPN and that would show that it was them that dropped the ball, not him.
– Clyde
Hey Clyde.
I’ve seen a lot of nastiness in this sport, but they really did do Shakur wrong. That whole night looked like one big hatchet job. Cutting away to show the crowd leaving was brutal. Hell, the ESPN Boxing site even dropped Shakur one spot on their lightweight rankings, from no. 3 to no. 4, for no other apparent reason than he hadn’t re-signed with Top Rank. This really should be a major head’s up to all the fighters currently under contract-- If you leave them, they very well could lash out and try to hurt your career. As you said, petty as fuck. Very unprofessional, too.
As for what went wrong? I don’t think that anything, necessarily, “went wrong” at all. As I wrote in a piece I did at my other writing gig, Shakur’s fight delivered the best main event boxing ratings on ESPN thus far in 2024 and his numbers since becoming a main event player are still better than any other fighter’s on the network in that period of time. So, Shakur was clearly an asset to them. And that’s why Top Rank reportedly offered him a 5-fight, $15 million deal to re-sign.
But, of course, things could’ve been better in the Stevenson-Top Rank/ESPN partnership.
Shakur was on the precipice of next-level stardom after his dominant, engaging performances against Jamel Herring and Oscar Valdez, but Top Rank never pulled the trigger to get him to that next level. Yeah, Shakur’s inability to make 130 anymore stalled his rise a bit, but Top Rank almost seemed punitive after that and they never again tried to match him up against high-end opposition again.
And this last matchup, against Artem Harutyunyan, seemed almost designed to make him look less than spectacular. Harutyunyan is a tough, solid, but conservative guy who doesn’t make many exploitable mistakes. This fight reeked of dullish comfortable unanimous decision from the moment it was signed.
Shakur has to take some blame for knowing the knock on him as a boring fighter, but not really going outside his comfort zone to make fan-friendly efforts. Like many top boxers, he has a crew of enablers, cheerleaders, and yes men around him that always talk him into the idea that he’s right. So, where’s the drive to change and maybe make some tweaks to his game?
He needs to engage more and not just take the points as they make themselves available.
I can see him landing some big fights as a free agent, but it would still be a good idea to have a greater eye on entertaining. Floyd Mayweather had a big personality and he could sell fights even to fans who thought his ring style was boring. Shakur doesn’t have that same flair. He has to pound some faces and show some flash.
Nate Diaz-Jorge Masvidal
Hi Paul.
I’d like to get your take on the Nate Diaz-Jorge Masvidal boxing match and your take in general on celebrities and MMA stars putting on the gloves. Diaz-Masvidal was actually pretty good and the card was decent as well. I notice you never even mentioned it in your articles.
– John W.
Hey John.
I mentioned Diaz-Masvidal on Twitter and said that it was the best main event of the evening, up against Stevenson-Harutyunyan and Zepeda-Cabrera.
I have no issues with celebrity boxing or with MMA stars having boxing contests. The more the merrier. Despite what some boxing “purists” seem to think, these kinds of fights don’t take anything away from “real” boxing and, as a matter of fact, have the potential to create excitement for boxing in fans who are not usually among the sport’s hardcore following. Diaz-Masvidal was fun and it was competitive.
Zepeda Being Ducked?
Hey Paul.
It’s a real shame when a fighter like William Zepeda can be no. 1 in all four sanctioning bodies, but still can’t get a title shot. If you were Golden Boy, how would you force your way into a title fight? Camaron deserves it!
– Juan Blancas Soto
Hey Juan.
Competitively and in terms of difficulty in making the fight, WBO champ Denis Berinchyk is obviously the easiest path to take. The problem is that if Zepeda fights and beats Berinchyk, his status as WBO titlist will make it much easier for the other titlists to not fight him. It’s almost to his benefit to remain no. 1 contender right now. As I mentioned last week, though, I wouldn’t be surprised if one of the sanctioning bodies wasn’t sizing Zepeda up for an “interim” or “regular” title as we speak.
Got a question (or hate mail) for Magno’s Bulging Mail Sack? The best of the best gets included in the weekly mailbag segment right here at FightHype. Send your stuff here: paulmagno@theboxingtribune.com.