Ever since Shakur Stevenson defended his title against William Zepeda in July, the Olympic silver medalist has been on the lookout for his next victim. Among the options, Teofimo Lopez and Lamont Roach Jr. were at the top of his list. Stevenson expressed interest in facing Roach Jr. next year after Gervonta Davis left ‘The Reaper’ stranded to face Jake Paul instead. Meanwhile, talks for a potential fight against Lopez had been swirling for a while, but that’s no more the case.

“Don’t be on here saving face, I ain’t heard nun bout u accepting the fight yet lil dude,” Stevenson wrote on X yesterday when Lopez claimed he had already agreed to the fight with him next year. Stevenson’s claims were confirmed today by Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix, who revealed on X that the fight talks between Stevenson and Lopez have stalled. “There has been no progress in talks for a Teofimo Lopez-Shakur Stevenson fight, and Saudi officials are moving on,” Mannix wrote. He blamed one culprit for this.

Teofimo Lopez has been difficult to deal with for the Shakur Stevenson fight

“There has been frustration with Lopez throughout the process, I’m told. The focus has shifted to finding another opponent for Stevenson, w/Lamont Roach a leading candidate,” Mannix added. This seems to have prompted the Newark native to issue a heartfelt message on X, where he admitted his desire to see the Teofimo Lopez fight be saved. “Never been scared of the bright lights, honestly, that’s when I shine the most,” Stevenson, who would have had to move up in weight to fight the WBO super lightweight champion, wrote on X. “Hopefully this fight happens cause I promise I will show how great I am.” But that wasn’t all.

“And truthfully, [I’ve] been waiting years and years for moments like this, and it’s almost finally here,” Stevenson wrote in a following tweet. “But I can’t get too excited until s—t’s real because that’s the story of my life. Get excited for no reason,” Shakur Stevenson concluded. The lucrative Lopez matchup—potentially worth seven figures given Stevenson’s past purses—has now fallen apart, leaving questions about who the 28-year-old will fight next.

Meanwhile, the Washington native made headlines of his own by calling out Floyd Mayweather. However, the retired boxing legend had other ideas.

Floyd Mayweather deflects challenge from Lamont Roach Jr.

Unable to land the Gervonta Davis rematch, Roach Jr. was open to facing Shakur Stevenson, but not quite yet. He called out Floyd Mayweather, Davis’ former mentor and promoter, for a fight instead. “Come on now, Floyd… set it up with me and you! We can run it, let’s see what you got left in that gas tank,” Roach Jr. wrote on X. 

While Mayweather responded, it wasn’t what Roach Jr. might have wanted to hear. ‘Money’ Mayweather suggested that Roach Jr. should fight his rising prospect, Curmel Moton, instead. “Let’s make this fight happen!! Curmel Moton is already IN. Roach, let’s do it. Even if I have to put up the money,” Mayweather wrote on Instagram.

Roach Jr., of course, didn’t agree with the proposed matchup, which ended in a heated exchange between him and Moton on X.

The potential clash between Shakur Stevenson and Teofimo Lopez appears to have fallen through. Despite the significant financial upside, Mannix’s report suggests that Lopez wasn’t interested in making the fight. What do you think might have led him to turn it down?