Shakur Stevenson named his ideal next three fights as he appeared on the DAZN Boxing Show.
Stevenson is a former junior lightweight unified champion but has now moved up to 135lbs after failing to make weight in his last appearance in his old division, against Robson Conceicao.
The 25-year-old unbeaten American has been linked, amongst others, to a clash with Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis, perhaps the division’s most marketable name.
However Tank is in the driving seat of picking any fight, though presumably his next bout will be against Ryan Garcia in April.
Given the crowds he can draw, Stevenson admitted that Tank is the man to lead negotiations for now.
“He’s probably right,” he said. “I am not taking anything away from him, as long as I get my opportunity, that’s all I care about. I take the backseat, he’s top dog, he put 20,000 in the stadium. I’m catching right up. When I get my chance, I’ve got to take it.”
Discussing Tank’s recent victory over Hector Luis Garcia, Stevenson described Davis’ belligerent approach.
He explained. “He don’t care about getting hit, he doesn't have any concern in his brain. He feels like he can take anyone’s punches.”
Joe Cordina, who won the IBF super featherweight championship last year with a dramatic knockout victory over Kenichi Ogawa, has been mentioned as a potential opponent, with Stevenson cautious but willing to consider a fight.
“Only reason why I comment is ‘cos he keeps mentioning my name. I’d be down to fight him, I think he’s a good fighter,” he stated. “I can’t take nothing away from that. This smoke is a little bit different. He’s knocking out dudes, I guess he’s really hyped about it. He knows what it is, he can keep saying what he keeps saying. We can fight at the end of the day. I’m ready right now. He’s talking about getting his title back, but I’m not fighting at 130 so why are we waiting?”
He added that he was now aiming to secure a fight against a fighter prominent on the WBC rankings as that is the title in his sights above the other three.
“We’re going down the list of the WBC,” he said. “I like that money green belt, that’s the one we’re attacking. I think it’s No. 6, that’s the one I want to fight, [Shuichiro Yoshino] - he actually stopped the [Masayoshi] Nakatani dude, faster than [Vasily Lomachenkp] did. He did it in five rounds.
Lomachenko is also an appealing option for Stevenson, depending on how he comes through is expected title fight with the division’s undisputed champion, Devin Haney.
He continued: “I would be interested but it depends how he does with [Devin Haney]. If he gives him a good fight and loses, I don’t see him beating Dev, but we could line that up. [If he wins,] for sure, I’ll be in line, that will be a perfect fight."
Asked for his ideal next three fights, he said: “If it was up to me: Loma, Devin and then Tank.”