Why You Should Watch Stevenson vs. Conceição Undercard

This weekend before Shakur Stevenson hits the ring Friday, NOT SATURDAY, probably, because of college football ruling the fall television dates in the fall, we will see a slew of great undercard fights if we choose to watch them.

Here are the ones I think you should look at

On ESPN, you will see Keyshawn Davis, the Olympic silver medalist who is already touted as the star of the 2020 Olympic class, facing Omar Tienda in an eight-round bout. Davis is one of the most offensively gifted fighters at an early point in his career, and his biggest is his ability to throw from, maintain and utilize his range. When Davis gets going offensively and comes forward on opponents, it often looks like a rock going down a hill, it is hard to stop.

You can’t escape @KeyshawnDavis8's smile…#SmileMovie Only in Theaters September 30. pic.twitter.com/6yeGIDGLAw

— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) September 21, 2022

Tienda has only been stopped once nearly ten years ago. The goal for Davis in this camp is to continue his upward trajectory with a fighter with six times the experience as himself and start conversations around when he will be in ten-round fights, seemingly coming soon. Davis, being only five fights into his career, is already bypassing a whole tier of prospect development based on his pedigree and how he has looked. The view is that Keyshawn Davis is set to be the next great American Olympian in the footsteps of Errol Spence Jr. and Shakur Stevenson from the previous Olympic classes in 2012 and 2016.

Featherweight Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington looks to continue his forward progress as a pro against Jose Argel in a six-round bout. Carrington has a good head on his shoulders, and his deep amateur pedigree has helped him develop into a solid pro. Carrington screams of being a main event fighter for the next decade and could be the fighter to take over Madison Square Garden with Xander Zayas in the near future as the New York market is looking for a boxer to get behind.

Carrington should've been Keyshawn Davis' Olympic teammate for the 2020 Olympics, winning the Olympic Trials from the eighth seed and having a fantastic final fight against David Navarro in the finals. Due to Olympic qualifications changing due to COVID-19, Duke Ragan could take the spot Carrington had earned based on world ranking points from the previous year.

"I'm definitely a diamond in the rough coming out of Brownsville." @B_Carrington1 💎 pic.twitter.com/RHp9vLWP95

— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) September 21, 2022

Carrington is looking the part of a young star, who is a great interview, and music heavily influences his life, as Carrington puts great thought into each walkout song he comes out to. So much so that they played the wrong song for his first fight, and Carrington waited until the right one played.

The best fight of the night is undefeated Puerto Rican fighter Henry Lebron, who despite fighting on Top Rank Inc shows, has really gotten no momentum thus far in his career, taking on former Top Rank Inc fighter Andy Vences in an eight-round fight. This is a trajectory bout as Vences has the world-level experience, and Lebron is touted as an undefeated fighter, but all things being equal – Vences has the edge. The big thing is that Andy Vences fighting the way he does can use his experience as an advantage and not a hindrance. Lebron's job is to create doubt in Vences, who has changed coaches a few times as a pro.

Antoine Cobb and Jaylan Phillips fought to a draw earlier this year. This will be a rematch. Cobb is a fighter who is close to the Shakur Stevenson team but needs to avenge how he looked in his first fight with Phillips. This is a big moment for both fighters and one of the most interesting bouts on the card.

Welterweight Jahi Tucker goes viral seemingly every time he fights. An offensive juggernaut, Tucker is a fighter who can connect with fans the same way Jared “Big Baby” Anderson does. This fight will tell a lot about Tucker as he fights Jose Luis Sanchez, who fought Adrian Granados to a draw and took Xander Zayas to a decision. Tucker could be a capital G Guy, but this is a step-up in competition.

Man means business. @WJahitucker x #StevensonConceicao pic.twitter.com/AdFfEW677n

— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) September 21, 2022

Finally, Floyd Diaz, a fighter who we have seen his whole life happen in front of our eyes, will fight on the undercard. Diaz is developing and should be in a fight of substance in the future.