As he navigates potential matchups, Shakur Stevenson is forced to reckon with his past.

With Teofimo Lopez making strong allegations about roughhouse tactics during their January 31 clash, questions from that bout continue to follow the four-division champion.

“There were a lot of illegal things that he (Shakur) was doing,” Lopez told Carl Froch in an interview. “But the ref wasn’t allowing it; I wasn’t really calling on any of it. And I have some history with Harvey Doc. So it’s kind of just the game of boxing, you know, when it gets into it.”

Shakur Stevenson, however, quickly pushed back when those comments resurfaced.

“Ask him, ask him to explain what I did dirty,” he said when the panel at the Agnew Podcast reacted to Lopez’s comments.

“He’s probably gonna tell you some dumb sh*t like me stepping on his foot or something like that,” he added. “I felt like he elbowed me.”

That response led one of the interviewers to bring up how, in the lead-up to the title fight at Madison Square Garden, Stevenson had said he would reciprocate if Lopez used underhanded methods.

Stevenson maintained that’s simply how boxing works.

Shakur Stevenson isn’t afraid to fight fire with fire

“So, I don’t mind,” he said. “Like, I’m going to be honest with y’all. Like I don’t mind dirty fighting. Like I don’t mind it.”

Stevenson also made it clear he would not rely on referees to protect him inside the ring.

“Like I’m, I don’t need a referee to come save me. Yeah. If somebody starts fighting dirty with me because I’m going to fight dirty back.”

That said, Stevenson also stressed that good fighters learn from those moments and improve from their mistakes.

“You got to realize what you do wrong.” he stated. “What did you do in there that you could have done differently? And that’s the only way you’re going to get better through your boxing career. Cuz if you don’t, you’re going to start getting your a** whooped.”

The indirect back-and-forth stems from their title fight earlier this year. Marking the year’s first major showdown, the two squared off for Lopez’s WBO and Ring titles.

To claim those belts, Stevenson, a WBC lightweight titlist, moved up a division. The fight, as it turned out, proved to be a tactical chess match between two technically gifted boxers.

But as the rounds progressed, it became clear who had control. With his sharp defense, Stevenson slowed Lopez’s momentum. Not only that, but the Olympic silver medalist outclassed him in close-quarter exchanges as well.

With little support coming from his corner, Lopez struggled as Stevenson took away his championship.

That performance still carries weight now, especially as Stevenson’s future options continue to dominate discussions around the lightweight division.

Amid talks of a fight against Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney, Stevenson also seems open to a matchup against IBF lightweight champion Raymond Muratalla.

The heavy-hitting Californian, who came off a win over Andy Cruz, is a fighter with a style similar to Stevenson’s previous opponent, William Zepeda.

If the fight materializes, fans should expect the two champions to trade shots at close range.

And if Muratalla feels he could get away with questionable maneuvers, he could be mistaken. As Stevenson made clear while responding to Lopez, he won’t shy away from responding in kind to deny Muratalla a win.

Ultimately, Stevenson believes in fighting fair. But as he made clear, anyone expecting him to stay clean while getting roughed up inside the ring may be in for a surprise.