WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson did what many of his critics had predicted he wouldn’t. The 28-year-old Newark native delivered an entertaining and dominant performance on Saturday night at the Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens, New York, against former interim title holder William Zepeda. The results? 

‘Sugar’ won the fight via unanimous decision, with the judges scoring the bout 118-110, 118-110, and 119-109—all in Stevenson’s favor. Despite Zepeda’s reputation as a volume puncher, Stevenson was fueled by the criticism of his overly defensive boxing style, as he willingly exchanged with Zepeda and outclassed the Mexican knockout artist.

However, even then, the southpaw doesn’t seem to have escaped his detractors completely. After the fight came to a close, Ryan Garcia hopped on X to give the undefeated boxer a reality check. “Shakur didn’t do any running tonight,” Garcia wrote. “But he also didn’t fight a guy with power tonight.”

The Victorville native claimed he wants to see Stevenson fight someone with real power to see “what he does.” Despite the criticism, Garcia congratulated Stevenson, writing, “Other then that congrats good work.” Regardless of Garcia’s claims, Zepeda entered the bout determined, having knocked out 82 percent of his first 33 pro opponents, which suggests he didn’t lack power.

However, Zepeda was coming off two close fights against Tevin Farmer, which suggests that against elite-level opponents, the Mexican’s pressure fighting and volume punches don’t really work, something Stevenson proved with his dominance in the bout. Nevertheless, the Zepeda fight marked Stevenson’s third successful title defense since acquiring the belt back in November 2023 by defeating Edwin De Los Santos.

In the meantime, Shakur Stevenson reflected on what he came into the fight to prove.

Shakur Stevenson is not a ‘poodle’

After securing his 24th professional victory, the 28-year-old southpaw from Newark took the mic to look back at the fight. “I came in here to prove a point,” Stevenson told DAZN’s Chris Mannix during the post-fight interview. “It wasn’t the performance I was looking for because I came in here to try and prove a point and I was tryin’ to fight, so I took more punishment than usual.” However, at the end of the day, Stevenson was happy because he had done the job that he was supposed to do.

“I got dog in me. I’m not no puppy. I’m not no poodle. I’m a tough guy, so I got dog in me. I fought,” Stevenson added. Despite his overwhelming win, Stevenson praised Zepeda for his efforts. “That was one of the toughest fighters at 135 pounds. I want a lotta people to get in the ring with him, and see how tough he is. So, he came in, he pushed me, pushed me to another level,” Stevenson added.

Shakur Stevenson has successfully taken the first step towards distancing himself from the criticism about his overly defensive boxing style. However, Ryan Garcia doesn’t seem to be convinced of Stevenson’s abilities. What did you think about the fight?