Exclusive: Shakur Stevenson: After I Fight Christopher Diaz, I Want That World Title Shot
Just 10 fights into his career, Shakur Stevenson is already taking on a notable name in Christopher Diaz and a title shot could be coming soon afterwards.
Although many believe Stevenson, who won the silver medal in the 2016 Olympics, he has already progressed far enough to the point where he is already ranked No. 3 by the WBA and that alone should warrant a chance at a title sometime soon. But first, he has to get past Diaz on April 20 at Madison Square Garden
“I’m not sure what the ranking is. I think I’m No. 3 on one of them. So if I’m No. 3 on one of them, I feel like after I fight Christopher Diaz, I want my world title shot,” Stevenson told Fightful during a media scrum.
Based on rankings alone, Stevenson isn’t just in the running for the WBA title being held by Leo Santa Cruz, but is also ranked in the top 10 on the remaining three governing bodies.
But Stevenson does have his eye on a pair of featherweight champions: WBO titleholder Oscar Valdez and IBF titleholder Josh Warrington. A win against Diaz, who challenged for the WBO super featherweight title in 2018, could push Stevenson towards his desired championship fight, according to him.
“I think it’s time for me to get my world title shot. Oscar Valdez and Josh Warrington got them belts, I’ll come for the easier fight to make,” Stevenson said.
Stevenson vs. Diaz is set to take place on the Terence Crawford vs. Amir Khan pay-per-view card on April 20. Fightful will also have live coverage of the entire card from Madison Square Garden. You can listen to Stevenson’s comments in the video above.
