Shakur Stevenson will attempt his first defense of the WBC lightweight belt against a surprising opponent. Will we witness the upset of the year? Here is our Stevenson vs Harutyunyan prediction.
Stevenson vs Harutyunyan Prediction: Why Is This Fight Even Happening?
Shakur Stevenson Preview
Shakur Stevenson is an American professional boxer who was born on June 28, 1997, in Newark, New Jersey. He took up boxing at the age of 11 and quickly gained attention. As an amateur, he represented the United States at the 2016 Summer Olympics, winning a silver medal.
In 2017, Stevenson made his professional debut and wasted no time. By January 2019, he was already fighting for significant regional belts. Despite his young age (27), Shakur Stevenson has already held world titles in three weight classes. He is undefeated with 21 wins and 10 knockouts.
Stevenson is known for his speed, skill, and intelligence in the ring, making him one of the most promising boxers in the sport. He is trained by renowned coach Kay Koroma and former world champion Andre Ward.
The good thing is that Stevenson has not yet reached his peak. The bad thing is that his last performance raised many questions about his abilities. In the bout with De Los Santos, the fans in the stands even booed after the final gong. That fight was frankly boring.
In fact, Stevenson often gets criticized for the low entertainment value of his fights. He is too careful and generally lacks knockout power. Nevertheless, the world titles in three weight classes by 26 prove that he is on par with the rest of the lightweight stars.
But before we give our final Stevenson vs Harutyunyan prediction, let's talk about the Armenian, who shouldn't be fighting for the title, if you ask us.
Artem Harutyunyan Preview
Artem Harutyunyan is an Armenian-German boxer who was born on June 3, 1990, in Yerevan, Armenia, but moved to Germany with his family at an early age.
Harutyunyan began his boxing career at the age of 10 and quickly rose through the ranks as an amateur boxer. He won numerous titles and medals, including a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Artem turned pro surprisingly late in his life, when he was 27, at the age of his current opponent. His first nine bouts were at light welterweight, then he moved down to lightweight. After 12 wins in a row with 7 knockouts, Harutyunyan suffered his first defeat to Frank Martin in July 2023. This was his last fight.
The Armenian is known for his aggressive fighting style and knockout power, which made him a fan favorite in the boxing world. And outside the ring, he is known for his charitable work and dedication to giving back to his community. He is involved in several charitable initiatives and regularly donates his time and resources to help those in need.
Our Shakur Stevenson vs Artem Harutyunyan Prediction: Shakur By Redemption
How did Harutyunyan get a title shot after losing his last fight? Moreover, he barely makes the Top 50 lightweights in the world right now. He is nowhere to be seen in the rankings.
This is the opportunity of a lifetime for the Armenian and we expect him to be aggressive from the first minute. We all know that Stevenson will not push forward but analyze and wait for his moment. And we expect him to win it around the 7-8th rounds.
Our Stevenson vs Harutyunyan prediction involves a knockout. Betting on the moneyline market is pointless here. Stevenson has to prove that he is the real deal and he was given a fairly easy opponent.
Shakur is 7 years younger, has almost twice the experience in the ring, and is also a Southpaw, which is always stylistically inconvenient for Orthodox boxers. And while he is hardly the entertainer we want him to be, he should be able to read the movements of the Armenian and earn his wages with a knockout.
