Stevenson, a former featherweight champion, was nothing short of sublime in the first half of his 130-pound bout against Jamel Herring.
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In the breakthrough performance of his young career, Shakur Stevenson became a two-division champion in a master class of a performance. Stevenson (17-0, 9 KOs), a former featherweight champion, was nothing short of sublime in the first half of his 130-pound bout against Jamel Herring. The 24-year-old southpaw went on to score a 10th-round stoppage over the WBO champion that easily goes down as the signature win Stevenson’s pro career had lacked after winning a silver medal at the 2016 Olympics.
??? ??? ??? WBO JUNIOR LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPION‼️
Make that 2x world champion, @ShakurStevenson. ?#HerringStevenson pic.twitter.com/69nB3n0lhj
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) October 24, 2021
Visibly more muscular in his upper body, Stevenson relied on his speed to pick Herring apart. Once the 35-year-old veteran found a way to get inside, Stevenson did just as well outmuscling Herring and acting like the bigger fighter.
The more offensive Herring (23-3, 11 KOs) would become, beginning in Round 4, the cleaner Stevenson would counter with power shots.
Stevenson, who would go on to outland Herring by a margin of 164 to 87, according to CompuBox, began to walk Herring down at will by Round 9, splitting his guard with big combos. A cut above Herring’s eye only began to get worse from there, causing referee Mark Nelson to pause the fight in Round 10 for the ringside doctor to take a look.
Nelson kept a short leash from there as Stevenson stepped on the gas and flurried along the ropes forcing the referee to stop the action despite Herring still being on his feet. The fight was ruled a TKO at 1:30 of Round 10.
Ryan Garcia’s difficulties getting back in the ring continue as news broke Friday afternoon that the 23-year-old had suffered a hand injury and a planned November 27 showdown with Joseph Diaz Jr. would be postponed, the promotion announced. The news comes slightly more than one week after the bout was officially announced.
Garcia was scheduled to face Javier Fortuna on July 9 when he withdrew to focus on his mental health. Garcia faced some criticism at the time, with allegations that the young star was not a fully committed boxer despite a dramatic January knockout of Luke Campbell in a fight where Garcia picked himself up from the canvas after suffering a brutal knockdown. Garcia’s speed and skills have been clear but his embrace of social media has drawn negative attention from some corners of the boxing world.
A fight with Diaz would mark the first time Garcia has ever faced a former world champion. Diaz is a former featherweight and super featherweight champion and won the interim WBC lightweight title in his most recent fight, stepping in for Garcia to take a wide decision over Fortuna.
Garcia will undergo surgery for the injury on Monday and is expected to be sidelined into 2022.
“I want to thank my fans for all the continued support,” Garcia said. “We are postponing my next fight for a couple of months as a result of a significant hand injury that requires immediate surgery. I will undergo surgery at Cedars-Sinai on Monday. I promise early 22 I will return better, faster, and stronger than ever. I love you guys!”
