Shakur Stevenson’s ascent in the boxing world was catalyzed by his silver medal win at the 2016 Rio Olympics, mirroring Floyd Mayweather’s own Olympic breakthrough with a bronze in 1996. Yet, that parallel merely scratches the surface of the striking resemblances between Shakur Stevenson and the illustrious Mayweather. Even former WBC welterweight champion Shawn Porter has acknowledged the uncanny similarities in their boxing style.

“First time I ever watched him spar, I went to the gym and told him—I was going to come up and watch him spar,” Porter recalled in an interview with Ring Magazine ahead of Stevenson’s WBC lightweight title defense against interim titleholder William Zepeda on 12th July at the Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens. And what he saw cemented his belief that Stevenson could be Mayweather’s second coming.

“[Stevenson] got in the ring with a mover that likes to use speed,” Porter said. “… For some reason, the kid stops moving and stops using his speed.” Porter explained this motivated him to watch how the Newark native does against his next sparring partner, who was a come-forward, pressure puncher, resembling Zepeda’s fighting style. “He stops that guy from doing everything that he does, and it happened in like less than a minute,” Porter was both stunned and impressed. His ability to effectively neutralize different fighting styles with ease surprised the former world champion. 

He added, “My point is, and we’ve seen this from Floyd Mayweather, some fighters have the ability to just simply stop you from doing what you do.” Porter didn’t want to reduce Stevenson to a mere comparison, but he could not ignore what was unfolding in front of his very eyes. “We’ve seen it before in Floyd, he has a lot of similarities to Floyd…,” the 37-year-old said. This moment from the past also fuels Porter’s prediction for the upcoming fight against a pressure-fighter like Zepeda.

He firmly believes that Stevenson will “completely turn off” Zepeda’s abilities, a warning Porter issued to the interim champion. Whether Stevenson can live up to Porter’s prediction is yet to be seen, but Porter isn’t alone in his claims.

Former promoter saw the parallels between Shakur Stevenson and Floyd Mayweather

Since 1966, Bob Arum has seen many boxers pass through his stable, but few have reminded him of Floyd Mayweather quite like Shakur Stevenson. Though ‘Sugar’ left Top Rank in July 2024, Porter’s claims are reminiscent of what the 93-year-old promoter had to say back in 2020. “When I first marveled at Floyd’s ability, and I saw Shakur, [I thought], ‘My God, it’s like the mirror!’” Arum told Business Insider.

“Floyd was an orthodox fighter… Shakur Stevenson is a southpaw, but he’s a mirror image of Floyd Mayweather,” Arum continued. Even though Mayweather has accomplished things that are difficult to replicate, the veteran promoter claimed Stevenson would do even better. “He is going to develop not only as this great defensive fighter, but will have a better offensive arsenal.”

If what Shawn Porter and Bob Arum have to say about Shakur Stevenson is true, William Zepeda is in deep trouble. Mayweather went undefeated—can Zepeda stop Stevenson from doing the same, saving Mayweather from watching the next gen rise above him? Or do you think it’s all a big coincidence?