Shakur Stevenson Wants Ilia Topuria Fight

“I saw you say that, you gotta take that back – you said that the UFC is better than boxing. At all – it ain’t even close. The skill level is different. Hell no. [Ilia Topuria?] Tell him come fight me,” Stevenson said

Shakur’s Belt

Elsewhere, WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman addressed the fallout regarding Stevenson, explaining the sanctioning body’s decision to declare his lightweight title vacant.

The controversy stems from Stevenson’s jump to the 140-pound division last month, where he successfully challenged Lopez for the WBO super-lightweight strap. After the win, the WBC lightweight title became vacant.

According to Sulaiman, while the WBC was open to Stevenson pursuing a title in a higher weight class, the move required a formal, written request to maintain his status as the lightweight champ—a document the WBC claims was never delivered.

When the title was first declared vacant, Stevenson said the WBC demanded a fee to keep his belt. Sulaiman confirmed that a fee—initially reported as $100,000 but later corrected to $120,000—was indeed requested.

WBC Reacts

“We received a call from [Stevenson’s] management in which they requested the WBC to have Shakur Stevenson fight in a different weight category while maintaining the lightweight championship … They even asked for a special belt for the fight.

“We explained clearly that it is within the WBC rules, and that I would be very happy to convey that to the board and make it happen, because Shakur has been associated since 2019. I told his management they needed to send a written request in order to start all the process. From that point on, we had another couple of conversations. They were supposed to send a written request, which didn’t happen,” Sulaiman stated

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“We did not strip Shakur. [His] management elected not to comply and they eventually vacated the title because they did not comply. We have written proof of everything. “That is accurate … What we sent is, the WBC approves your petition to fight, and according to the WBC rules, a fee of $120,000, which is less than the 3% that should be.

“By the way they could contact us and say ‘we are making this’ – and we have adjusted the sanctioning fees many times … It is not about the money, it’s the rule. Of course a fighter who is recognised by the WBC as a world champion has a validity, has a seal of having a position in the boxing world at that time,” Sulaiman added