Shakur Stevenson says his combat in opposition to Artem Harutyunyan this Saturday night time is the right “measuring stick” for followers to check him to Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis.
Tank (30-0, 28 KOs) defeated Frank Martin by an eighth-round knockout on June fifteenth in a aggressive combat till the KO. Final yr, Martin barely edged Harutyunyan (13-1, 7 KOs), beating him by a slim twelve-round unanimous resolution on July 15, 2023.
A Weak Alternative of Opponent
It may be wishful for Shakur to assume followers will view his combat with Harutyunyan as any measuring keep on with Tank Davis.
The hardcore boxing followers who noticed the Martin vs. Harutyunyan combat have already shaped their opinions on Shakur. They see this as a weak alternative of opponent, provided that Artem is coming off a loss to the man Tank simply knocked out within the eighth spherical.
Shakur’s solely likelihood to impress followers is that if he reveals braveness, stands within the pocket, and destroys Harutyunyan in a knockout victory. The rest from that might be seen as a loss for Shakur by way of his recognition, which is nosediving.
“I feel it’s an important measuring stick. With Tank having fought Frank Martin and me combating Artem, we’re combating the identical stage of opposition rattling close to as a result of they [Martin & Harutyunyan] fought one another and we seen that they have been on the identical stage,” stated Shakur Stevenson to MillCity Boxing, feeling that his opponent for this Saturday night time, Artem Harutyunyan, is a similar-level fighter than Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis’ final challenger Martin.
Harutyunyan is a poor measuring stick for followers to check Shakur to Tank Davis as a result of it appears so dangerous that he’s combating this man, provided that he’s coming off a loss to Martin.
If Shakur needed to impress followers, he ought to have given Edwin De Los Santos a rematch as a result of he may show to the followers that he’s able to trying good in opposition to him when 100% wholesome.
“Now y’all can gauge off of our performances and get the followers excited a bit bit,” stated Shakur, placing a optimistic spin on his selecting to combat Harutyunyan, who’s coming off a loss to Frank Martin.
Followers have already deemed Shakur weak for selecting Harutyunyan as his opponent, and the one means he can come out forward is by knocking him clear out on Saturday night time.
Sadly, the chances of Shakur doing which might be just about nonexistent. He fights too scared and gained’t dare stand within the pocket to let his fingers go, even in opposition to a non-puncher like Harutyunyan.
Shakur Needs to Redefine His Picture
“I wish to present everyone who I’m. I feel lots of people forgot who I’m as a fighter off of 1 combat [Edwin De Los Santos],” stated Shakur when requested what he hopes to point out followers in his combat in opposition to the just lately crushed 33-year-old Harutyunyan on Saturday.
“I don’t put out constantly nights the place I’m shining and searching good, and one night time, I’ve a foul night time, and everyone is caught on that,” stated Shakur.
Sadly, Shakur’s combat with Edwin De Los Santos wasn’t the primary time he had engaged in a non-entertaining combat. He did the identical factor in these fights as properly:
– Joet Gonzalez
– Jeremiah Nakathilia
– Oscar Valdez
– Robson Conceição
– Jamel Herring
– Christopher Diaz
An Odd Duck within the Professional Ranks
Followers don’t point out previous Shakur fights as a lot, however they weren’t entertaining to observe. Shakur used the identical pull-back model in his combat in opposition to De Los Santos and ensured he was not often hit.
Whereas that’s nice for followers who get pleasure from watching defensive work, it wasn’t thrilling stuff. Shakur hasn’t modified his combating model from his novice days and is combating in the identical model.
That doesn’t match into the professional sport for what followers are accustomed to watching. Shakur is an odd duck within the professional ranks, and it takes a selected sort of fan to get pleasure from his strategy to combating.
There simply aren’t sufficient of these forms of followers to show Shakur right into a bonafide must-see star. In the event you put Shakur in a time machine and introduced him again to the Mayweather period within the early 2000s, Floyd’s followers would respect his combating model.
Shakur doesn’t match on this period, and there isn’t going to be a change in followers’ tastes for the retro model that he makes use of.
