“It Was a Shoulder Problem”: Bob Arum Defends Shakur Stevenson’s Performance; Explains What His Fighter Was Going Through Ahead of the Bout

Shakur Stevenson finally got his shot at the title after failing to make the fight with former undisputed champion Devin Haney, who moved up in weight to face Regis Prograis to become a champion in the super lightweight division. Stevenson had the stage all set for him, as he went toe-to-toe against Edwin De La Santos. However, his performance left a lot of fans disappointed. Even during the fight, the audience’s displeasure was clear to see as they booed the fighters.

Stevenson only threw 21 punches with his left hand, which raised a lot of questions about his reluctance to throw punches. Many wondered if it was because of some injury he might have suffered. And now it appears that it was indeed the case as promoter Bob Arum came out with some insights about Stevenson’s conditions prior to the fight.

Bob Arum discusses what went wrong with Stevenson before the fight

Promoter Bob Arum revealed that Stevenson faced a shoulder injury and various other ailments during his training camp, leading to cautious gameplay in what was a lackluster bout. Arum expressed concern about Stevenson withdrawing from the main event due to these injuries. Moreover, he stated, “I mean, I know we had him visiting doctors in the weeks before the fight for various ailments. So, I think he therefore fought a very cautious fight. But it was a stinker. It was a snoozer, and particularly after the fight before [a 12-round majority draw between Emanuel Navarrete and Robson Conceicao], which was one of the best fights of the year.”

Arum emphasized the importance of Stevenson learning from this experience, cautioning against making every training session an intense battle. Despite the subpar performance affecting Stevenson’s momentum, Arum believes a stellar performance in his next fight will overshadow the Santos bout. He pointed out how a fighter is judged by his “last fight”. Moreover, he claimed that Stevenson is a “young guy” and that “he’s just beginning to reach his potential.”

Shakur Stevenson also appeared frustrated by his performance

The new WBC lightweight champion has also acknowledged how lackluster his most recent performance was. Even after he won the fight via unanimous decision with no doubts regarding his win, the audience kept booing the fighter even during the post-fight interview. During the interview, Stevenson addressed his performance and stated, “I don’t really care about, I had a really bad performance tonight. That’s all I’m really focused on, I wasn’t feeling too good so… I’ll live with it, it’s okay, I came here got victory, that’s all I wanted to do.”

When asked about him landing so few punches with his left hand, he refused to elaborate on his pre-fight condition. He stated that he doesn’t want to make any “excuses”. However, he stated, “It happens we go through a lot as a fighter. I’m good.” Not only that but the 26-years old also claimed that he didn’t “feel good before the fight.” Furthermore, he added, “Honestly, I already told myself, if I’m feeling like this in the ring and if it’s not going well, I’mma box and get the victory.”

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Overall, his recent performance raised a lot of doubts about his chances against top-class fighters such as Gervonta Davis and Devin Haney. What are your thoughts about his fight against the Dominican boxer? Do you believe that it was indeed his pre-fight injuries that caused him to fight so passively? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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