Matchroom Boxing's head, Eddie Hearn, expressed his interest in signing WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson (21-0, 10 KOs). Currently, the American boxer's affairs are managed by Bob Arum's Top Rank promotional company.
"I think Shakur is one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. He could be unbeatable. He's a very good boxer, but I think his promotion has been terrible. Partly because when Bob Arum knows a fighter wants to leave, he loses interest in them. This likely happened two or three fights ago when Bob expected to continue working with him. Now it seems Bob isn't planning to do that anymore.
When Arum realized Shakur wasn't planning to extend the agreement, he thought, 'If he's leaving, I'm not going to promote him.' Shakur should be a big star but isn't. This works both in his favor and against him commercially. He's made a lot of money but should be making much more based on the revenue he generates for shows.
I like him. I think he's a great fighter and would be an incredible addition to the Matchroom team. If he becomes available, we'll definitely talk. We'll see if it works for both of us," Hearn stated.
Top Rank signed Shakur Stevenson in 2017. On July 6, the Olympic silver medalist will defend his title against Artem Harutyunyan (12-1, 7 KOs). This will be the boxer's last fight as a Top Rank client.