Prudential Center, New Jersey — Over 8.412 fans came to Newark to watch hometown favorite Shakur Stevenson in action. The homecoming looked to be his big breakout moment, as the WBC lightweight champion was ready to show what he can do against tough competition.
On the eve of free agency, Stevenson beat Artem Harutyunyan via unanimous decision to retain his belt. It was a dominant if uninspiring performance from the 27-year-old, who did not stay in the pocket and provide relentless pressure through the fight.
Stevenson himself graded his performance a C+ effort. The crowd booed through the fight, some leaving by the tenth round. Harutyunyan managed to fight through key shots but appeared to tire towards the latter rounds. Still, he survived and provided slick shots of his own.
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“It’s kind of hard to prove it if you don’t have a fighter who wants to fight back. He’s just trying to make sure he survives,” Stevenson said. “He’s a good fighter, e’s tough, he’s strong. I would’ve wanted him to try a little harder, so that way it could be a more fun fight.
“I have to cut off the ring a bit more. He’d go one way and then go the other way, so I gotta go back in the gym and work on cutting off the gym.”
The start of the fight saw Stevenson land counter shots as Harutyunyan pressed forward. The defensive fighter, Stevenson stayed out of the pocket, waiting for Harutyunyan to make a mistake. The crowd did grow restless early, but Stevenson woke them up with a few body shots.
By round five, Stevenson fought on the inside, landing head shots and continuous body shots that pushed Harutyunyan back. Harutyunyan got hurt in the sixth, putting his hands down. Stevenson was ready to go for the kill, as Harutyunyan looked like he was finished, but nothing came from it. Stevenson didn’t press forward in round seven, though he pushed Harutyunyan back with body combinations.
Boo birds reigned down by round eight, but the fighters still went about their business.
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At this point, there were conversations between Stevenson and his team. Stevenson mentioned the idea of the judges scoring a controversial fight, as they did when Robson Conceicao edged O'Shaquie Foster for the WBC super featherweight title. It should have motivated Stevenson, who remained at a distance.
Stevenson let his hands loose as the building started to empty out in the eleventh, and by the last round, he built on his punches. The crowd, as it did in the co-main event, counted down the last remaining seconds of the fight as if it were the Royal Rumble.
It is Stevenson’s second straight fight to go the distance another one where the crowd assessed it was not how he will get fights he wants, like against Vasiliy Lomachenko or Gevonta Davis.
Top Rank’s Bob Arum, who has appeared at almost every Top Rank show well into his 90s, was not at his fight.
It is unknown where Stevenson goes from here as he looks to face the best in his division and attempts to secure the status of boxing's best.
The Sporting News provided results from the entire Stevenson vs. Harutyunyan fight card.
Shakur Stevenson vs. Artem Harutyunyan full card results
- Shakur Stevenson (c) def. Artem Harutyunyan via unanimous decision for the WBC lightweight title (119-109, 118-110, 116-112)
- Robson Conceicao def. O'Shaquie Foster (c) via split decision for the WBC super featherweight title (116-112, 112-116, 115-113)
- Keyshawn Davis def. Miguel Madueno via unanimous decision (99-91, 99-91, 99-91)
- Abdullah Mason def. Luis Lebron via TKO (1:18 into round three)
- Eridson Garcia def. William Foster III via unanimous decision (99-91, 98-92, 98-92)
- Keith Colon def. Hunter Turbyfill via TKO (round two)
- Kelvin Davis def. Kevin Johnson via majority decision (76-76, 78-74, 78-74)
- Ali Feliz def. Robinson Perez via unanimous decision (40-36, 40-36, 40-36)