Fight Week: Shakur Stevenson will bid to become three-division titleholder

FIGHT WEEK

Pound-for-pounder Shakur Stevenson and Edwin De Los Santos are scheduled to fight for the 135-pound title stripped from Devin Haney on Thursday night in Las Vegas.

SHAKUR STEVENSON (20-0, 10 KOs)
vs. EDWIN DE LOS SANTOS (16-1, 14 KOs)

• Date: Thursday, Nov. 16
• Time: 10:30 p.m. ET / 7:30 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
• Where: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas
• TV/Stream: ESPN, ESPN+
• Division: Lightweight (135 pounds)
• At stake: Vacant WBC title
• Odds: Stevenson 8-1 favorite (average of multiple outlets)
• Also on the card: Emanuel Navarrete vs. Robson Conceicao, junior lightweights (for Navarrete’s WBO title)
• Prediction: Stevenson UD
• Background: Stevenson will try to become a world titleholder in a third division and continue to build the case that he’s as good as anyone in boxing in an unusual Thursday-night fight. The gifted 2016 Olympic silver medalist from New Jersey has been untouchable as a professional, even as his opposition has improved. He became a two-division champion by stopping Jamel Hering to win a 130-pound title in 2021 and then successfully defended by easily outpointing unbeaten Oscar Valdez in a title-unification bout the following April, which lifted him onto many pound-for-pound lists (No. 13 on Boxing Junkie’s). He lost his belts on the scale before defeating Robson Conceicao by a wide decision in September last year, after which he made the decision to move up to 135. He knocked out Shuichiro Yoshino in six rounds in his debut as a full-fledged lightweight on April 8. He will now face De Los Santos for the 135-pound title stripped from Devin Haney. The 24-year-old from the Dominican Republic has won three consecutive fights since he lost a split decision to William Foster III in January of last year, knockouts of Luis Acosta and Jose Valenzuela, and a decision over Joseph Adorno. De Los Santos is taking a significant step up in opposition against Stevenson.

ALSO FIGHTING THIS WEEK

TUESDAY

• Steve Claggett vs. Miguel Madueno, lightweights, Montreal (ESPN+)

WEDNESDAY

• Justin Pauldo vs. Jerry Perez, lightweights, Plant City, Florida (ProBox TV)

SATURDAY

• Diego Pacheco vs. Marcelo Coceres, super middleweights, Los Angeles (DAZN)
• Denzel Bentley vs. Nathan Heaney, middleweights, Manchester, England (ESPN+)
• Franck Petitjean vs. Adam Azim, junior welterweights, Wolverhampton, England (Peacock)