Shakur Stevenson has been subject to ridicule ever since his last fight.
Although he defeated Edwin De Los Santos by unanimous decision last November, Stevenson's performance was lackluster as he failed to produce double-digit punches in any of the 12 rounds in defending his WBC lightweight world championship.
Putting the title on the line in his hometown of Newark, New Jersey on Saturday night against Artem Harutyunyan, Stevenson just wants fans to know although he prides himself in the 'hit and don't get hit' mantra, he can step on the gas when it comes to offense.
"I'm gonna just be myself, come out and show my talent, show my levels," Stevenson said during Wednesday's press conference. "Like I said, I think I'm one of the best in the sport of boxing at hit and don't get hit.
"But there's a certain way of doing that and I want to show the fans and all that moving around and stuff, I really don't have to do. I can sit in the pocket and beat you up, too."
The 27-year-old Stevenson (21-0, 10 KOs) will be pressured to show that style and let his hands go a lot more against an aggressive Harutyunyan (12-1, 7 KOs) who is coming off a hard-fought unanimous decision loss to Frank Martin last July.
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