Shakur Stevenson vs. Harutyunyan: Fight Stats and Key Facts
On July 6 in Newark, USA, Shakur Stevenson will defend his WBC lightweight title for the first time. His opponent is German Artem Harutyunyan, who previously fought Frank Martin.
Shakur Stevenson
Country: USA
Age: 26 years
Weight Class: Lightweight (up to 61.2 kg)
Height: 173 cm
Reach: 173 cm
Stance: Southpaw
Record: 21 wins (10 by KO), 0 losses
KO Percentage: 47.6%
Total Career Rounds: 145
Recent Fights:
- UD win in 12 rounds – Edwin De Los Santos
- TKO win in the 6th round – Shuichiro Yoshino
- UD win in 12 rounds – Robson Conceicao
- UD win in 12 rounds – Oscar Valdez
- TKO win in the 10th round – Jamel Herring
Total Rounds in Recent Fights: 38
Average Rounds in Recent Fights: 10.4
Longest and Shortest Recent Fights: Longest – 12 rounds / Shortest – 6 rounds (TKO 6)
Recent Fights KO Percentage: 40%
Total Opponents' Record at Fight Time: 102 wins, 4 losses
Best Record Among Recent Opponents: Oscar Valdez (30-0 at the time of the fight)
Worst Record Among Recent Opponents: Jamel Herring (23-2 at the time of the fight)
Artem Harutyunyan
Country: Germany
Age: 33 years
Weight Class: Lightweight (up to 61.2 kg)
Record: 12 wins (7 by KO), 1 loss
KO Percentage: 68.4%
Total Career Rounds: 83
Height: 172 cm
Reach: Unknown
Stance: Orthodox
Recent Fights:
- UD loss in 12 rounds – Frank Martin
- UD win in 10 rounds – Humberto Galindo
- KO win in the 5th round – Samuel Molina
- SD win in 12 rounds – Vladislav Melnik
- RTD win after the 4th round – Miguel Cesario Martin
Total Rounds in Recent Fights: 43
Average Rounds in Recent Fights: 8.6
Longest and Shortest Recent Fights: Longest – 12 rounds / Shortest – 4 rounds (KO win)
Recent Fights KO Percentage: 40%
Total Opponents' Record at Fight Time: 79 wins, 8 losses, and 1 draw
Best Record Among Recent Opponents: Frank Martin (17-0 at the time of the fight)
Worst Record Among Recent Opponents: Miguel Cesario Martin (19-4 at the time of the fight)
Background of the Fight
Shakur Stevenson’s last fight did not impress many. He is considered one of the most talented young boxers in the world, possibly the most talented. However, his fight against De Los Santos was disappointing.
Shakur was accompanied by Andre Ward and Terence Crawford. Floyd Mayweather visited the locker room. The concentration of legendary presence was high, but the fight itself was one of the most passive in 2023. The boxers threw and landed few punches, mostly moving around each other.
Shakur won decisively, but only because his opponent did even less. He needs to redeem himself, and Harutyunyan was chosen for that purpose. Artem is a solid opponent, having given a good fight to Frank Martin. He has size and power, but Stevenson’s skills are at the highest level. This is not an easy opponent but not too dangerous – enough to make a strong comeback after a fight that was essentially a fiasco.
Shakur’s promoter, Bob Arum, also expects a spectacular performance. Arum believes it is almost impossible to outbox Stevenson cautiously but wants to see a show because professional boxing is about entertainment.
This fight will be Stevenson’s last under his current contract with Top Rank. He can either renew it, sign with another promoter, or become a free agent like Devin Haney. Arum has prepared interesting offers for Shakur, including fights against Vasyl Lomachenko. Whether Stevenson stays with Top Rank will be known after the fight against Harutyunyan.
Additional Facts:
- This will be Harutyunyan’s second fight in the USA. His record here is 1 fight – 1 loss. He lost to Frank Martin by decision, having been knocked down in the 12th round.
- The average age of Shakur’s opponents is 30.6 years. Harutyunyan is 33. The last time Stevenson fought an opponent of the same age was in 2022 against Robson Conceicao, when he defended his WBC and WBO titles at junior lightweight (up to 58.9 kg).
- The average age of Harutyunyan’s opponents is 25.8 years. Shakur will be the third oldest among Artem’s recent opponents. Only Miguel Cesario Martin and Frank Martin were older.
- This will be Stevenson’s third fight at lightweight. After moving up, he first knocked out Japan’s Yoshino and then won the WBC title by defeating De Los Santos, taking the belt vacated by Devin Haney.
Incidentally, Haney was supposed to fight Shakur but chose to move up to super lightweight instead.