Mark this as one of the most surprising things to happen this year so far. WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson (21-0, 10 KOs) took to X to announce his retirement on Monday night. Stevenson did not hide his feelings toward the sport and why he was leaving it.
“I’m officially retiring from the sport of boxing. I’ll be in the gym forever perfecting my craft and helping the next generation become great and chase they dreams, but I ain’t fw this weak boxing game.”
This announcement coincidentally comes an hour after the WBO ordered a fight for their vacant lightweight title. It wasn’t so much the announcement of the vacant title but the fighters involved. The WBO ordered Emanuel Navarrete vs. Denys Berinchyk to start negotiations for a future fight. There were rumors that Navarrete would face Stevenson next, but in light of the recent news by the WBO, it doesn’t look like it’ll happen in the coming months. Stevenson replied to a post by an X account that had the WBO news on their account.
Only time will tell if this retirement is real or, better yet, short-lived. Stevenson is a generational talent who hasn’t quite connected with the boxing fan base as he thought he would. His last fight against Edwin De Los Santos in November was heavily scrutinized for the lack of entertainment. Will Stevenson unretire in the coming days, or was November the last time we saw him enter the ring for a fight? FightsATW will continue to monitor the story as it develops.
More must-reads: