Finally, what was long anticipated has finally happened. After weeks of suspense, Shakur Stevenson has signed with Dana White‘s Zuffa Boxing, making him the biggest name the fledgling promotion has recruited so far in its short, less than a year-old history.

“Ink = Dry ✍️ Let’s get it, @ShakurStevenson 🥊,” read Zuffa’s X post, which also featured a short clip of Stevenson and White signing the promotional contract.

However, not many fans seem to have taken the news well. While close observers and pundits are still weighing in on how the move could shape Shakur Stevenson‘s career, several users expressed their disappointment.

That frustration stems from the uncertainty surrounding Zuffa, including the earlier comments made by Dana White about working with other sanctioning bodies.

“I am going to create our own belt. But we got to figure that out. I am not interested in working with sanctioning bodies. I have no interest in it whatsoever,” the UFC CEO had mentioned long before, when Zuffa was still in its nascent stage.

In contrast to that stance, Stevenson, a four-division champion, currently holds the WBO and the Ring titles in the light welterweight division. Beyond the Ring belt, which is owned by Turki Alalshikh, who has a partnership stake in Zuffa, questions remain about the WBO belt following Stevenson’s move to the promotion.

There’s already a precedent that offers some indication of how things could shape up for Stevenson. Back in January, Matchroom Boxing’s Jai Opetaia became the first big name to join White’s boxing promotion. However, the Australian was holding the IBF’s cruiserweight title at the time. As it eventually happened, Opetaia’s participation in Zuffa’s fourth event in March led to him being stripped of the IBF title, which is now lying vacant.

Considering Stevenson has been calling out champions, including Ryan Garcia and, more significantly, Devin Haney, doubts will now grow about how those ambitions would be fulfilled under Zuffa, especially regarding his WBO title.

As the past few months have shown, most of the prominent names who have joined White’s boxing promotion seem to have been fighting lesser-known opponents.

That probably explains why several fans reacted to Stevenson’s move to Zuffa so bluntly.

Fans rip into Shakur Stevenson’s move to Zuffa Boxing following official announcement

“Talking about legacy and denying the rumors about signing, but here he is, a f**king fraud. This is not the legacy; it’s unsanctioned BS, and to give more proof on that, the fighters that were champions and signed with this got stripped, and the owner is a UFC owner 😂, this dude,” one fan wrote.

That anger likely stems from the weeks of uncertainty that saw both Stevenson and White remaining noncommittal despite rumors about a deal gaining considerable momentum. Perhaps the shock would have been softened had more transparency been exercised.

Another pointed out, “I get it, but it’s a damn shame. Shakur had the trajectory to be an all-time great. Now he’ll be fighting cab drivers under Zuffa.”

That’s certainly a realistic possibility. But it also deserves a closer look. It’s true Opetaia ended up fighting Brandon Glanton. But former champion Jose Valenzuela received an opportunity to avenge his 2022 loss to Edwin De Los Santos in a rematch. Also, some of the matchups put on by Zuffa, such as Shane Mosley Jr. vs. Serhii Bohachuk, were quite well received. Yet, the negative sentiment continued.

“Congrats on completely destroying your legacy & ensuring there’s ZERO chance you’ll be remembered as a great, because you were greedy enough to take money from an –bred wife-b–ting MAGA dipsh-t & his unsanctioned dipsh-t promotion, dumba–. Zuffa is f–king disgusting garbage,” one user strongly noted in their rebuke.

Beyond those expletives, there’s a deep underlying fear that Stevenson, who has so far managed to build a solid resume that commenced with his Olympic medal-winning feat and has since become a champion in four weight classes, now confronts the risk of being restricted to fighting unheralded opposition in non-title fights instead of marquee names, thus endangering what many view as an already established first-ballot Hall of Fame trajectory.

One user said, “Dana look at him like thankyou for letting me collect your soul.” Meanwhile, another added, “Sellout. Chasing greatness? Ha! Your legacy has been stamped now for eternity as a f**king sellout.”

Beyond that sentiment, it is worth understanding why Stevenson might have made the move. Strictly speaking, he was a free agent who, while having a capable manager in J. Prince, had considerable opportunities lined up following his recent wins, including those over William Zepeda and later Teofimo Lopez.

However, as has often been the case in boxing, securing lucrative deals and major matchups as a free agent can become a daunting task. At times like these, the backing of a powerful promoter often comes in handy during negotiations.

Lastly, for all the criticisms leveled against Zuffa Boxing over not working with other sanctioning bodies, one should note that, given how boxing is structured, it’s virtually impossible for them to work in complete isolation. In that regard, White and his team appear to have shown some flexibility regarding working with other organizations and sorting out those differences.

So it would be too early to label the move a total failure for Shakur Stevenson. Fans should keep an eye on how things develop over the coming weeks.