WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson says ring size doesn’t matter to him in his title defense against William Zepeda on February 22 in Riyadh. Shakur (22-0, 10 KOs) is confident he will win against Zepeda, no matter what size ring they fight in.
Zepeda’s promoter, Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions, told Shakur’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, in his Clap Back article on Thursday that the condition for the event to take place is that it must be “in the ring” to prevent “running. .” De La Hoya, in particular, felt he would be the running back, but Shakur and Devin Haney are more likely.
Zepeda (31-0, 27 KOs) still needs to win his 10-round fight against Tevin Farmer (33-6-1, 8 KOs) on November 16 in Riyadh. The event will take place if Zepeda wins that fight and the other contenders on the card agree to fight in a smaller ring on the February 22 card.
De La Hoya has not said what size ring he wants, but he may want a 16-meter ring, the smallest size for professional boxing. With that size, he won’t be able to get Shakur to run or use his three-foot drop-back style to escape pressure.
If Shakur, 27, loses the fight, he will have something to blame. He can tell his fans that the ring was too small for him to move, they will sympathize with him. Zepeda has the ability to cut through the ring regardless of size, and will be a big problem for Shakur if this fight happens.
Fans doubt that the smaller ring will prevent Shakur from running because he will find a way to prevent Zepeda from getting to him, even at the fence. One fan on social media said, “The size of the ring doesn’t matter. MF [Shakur] he’s still going to run.”
Shakur will undergo hand surgery for a training camp injury that forced the cancellation of his October 12 fight against Joe Cordina in Riyadh. He’s coming off surgery and hasn’t looked his best since moving up to the 135-lb division in 2023. Shakur has reached his ceiling with what he can do at lightweight after successful campaigns at 130 and 126.
The roads are closed 😤 ring size doesn’t matter to me either @OscarDeLaHoya
— Shakur Stevenson (@ShakurStevenson) November 8, 2024
