"Bob Needs to Shut Up." Shakur Likely to Leave Top Rank

WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson is expected to part ways with Bob Arum’s Top Rank after his fight against Artem Harutyunyan (12-1, 7 KOs) on July 6 in Newark, USA, and continue his career as a free agent.

The boxer has expressed dissatisfaction with his partnership with Top Rank.

"When I become a free agent, everyone will know that the fight between me and Gervonta Davis is the biggest fight possible. Every promoter wants to be a part of that. Bob Arum tells me, 'Top Rank or nothing.' He says I have no other options besides Top Rank.

And then he talks about conversations he supposedly had with Eddie Hearn. We don't know if it's true or not.

Bob just needs to shut up and let his people run the company because he's not running it.

I know my worth. I know that in the coming years, I will become one of the most legendary fighters to ever box. That's my value," Stevenson told Fight Hub TV.

In a recent interview with insider and journalist Dan Rafael, Stevenson mentioned that Top Rank isn't promoting his fights properly, but he is currently focused on his upcoming fight against Harutyunyan.

"I know my promotional company is not trying to promote the fight correctly. I just pray that the people who have always supported me continue to do so and come to enjoy the show. It's not just about this interview I'm giving you. I think we've worked long enough, and they just need to do more. I don't want to go into details. It is what it is. I'm not worried—I just need to come and do my job.

All the talks about the contract and everything will matter after the fight. Right now, we have to stay focused on what's ahead and be ready to perform, so no, it doesn't bother me. It is what it is, and it doesn't distract me at all," Shakur said.

Promoter Bob Arum has said that Top Rank has interesting fights lined up for Shakur, but he needs to renew his contract first.

"Shakur will become a free agent after the fight on July 6. Then we'll see what his plans are before we can announce our intentions. Because we can't be his promoters if he doesn't renew.

If he re-signs with us, we do have some interesting fights for him. But I won't go into details because he becomes a free agent after July 6. He's been and remains a great fighter for us. We've enjoyed promoting his career. We'll see what happens next," Arum told FightHype.com.

It appears that if Stevenson does part ways with Top Rank, he will have options for collaboration with Matchroom Boxing, as head of the company Eddie Hearn told Fight Hub TV.

"I think Shakur is one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. He could be unbeatable. He's very good, but I think his promotion has been terrible.

Part of that is because when Bob Arum knows a fighter wants to leave, he loses interest in them. This seems to have happened two or three fights ago when Bob was counting on continuing the collaboration. Now Bob doesn’t seem to be planning that.

When Arum realized Shakur wasn’t going to renew the agreement, he thought, 'If he's leaving, I'm not going to promote him.' Shakur should be a big star, but he already is one. This works both for and against him commercially. He's made a lot of money, but given the revenue he generates for shows, he should make a lot more. I like him. I think he's a great fighter and would be an incredible addition to the Matchroom team. If he's available, we'll definitely talk. We'll see if it works for both of us," Hearn said.