Ryan Garcia says WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson “isn’t that good.” He states that Shakur is being “puffed up’ because he sat on the ropes in his last fight against the quantity puncher William Zepeda on July 12, 2025, blocking shots.
(Credit: Golden Boy)
Zepeda’s Lack of Power
Ryan says Shakur (24-0, 11 KOs) could do this because “Zepeda doesn’t have any power in his shots.” So, Stevenson could stay on the ropes, block, and infrequently land a potshot. Garcia points out that the fighters Shakur doesn’t do well against are ones with power, like Edwin De Los Santos.
Ryan says Stevenson can’t stay within the pocket against punchers and has to maneuver around. That’s when he doesn’t look good. That might explain why Shakur moved a lot in his fights against De Los Santos and Jeremia Nakathilia. Fans view those two as the toughest punchers Stevenson has fought since turning skilled in 2017.
Ryan says he would love to fight Shakur and states that he would “give it to him.” He believes that Stevenson would don’t have any power to fret him, much like Devin Haney. Garcia says he would must “Chase him” because Stevenson could be “running, running, and running.”
Fighting Power Punchers
“Speaking of Shakur. Power punchers don’t highlight his skills, but the blokes that throw volume highlight it because he can just fade them off [block] and just crack them. That guy is just not that good,” said Ryan Garcia to Cigar Talk about Shakur Stevenson.
Zepeda (33-1, 27 KOs) landed loads of body shots on Shakur while he was backed against the ropes of their fight on July 12, 2025, on the Louis Armstrong Arena in Queens, Recent York.
The issue Zepeda had was that the judges were more impressed with the occasional headshot that Stevenson landed. They seemingly filtered out the nonstop body shots Zepeda was landing on Shakur in every round, and just dialed in on his punches to the top. It was like watching an amateur fight with judges only scoring headshots. If Zepeda had been higher aware of how the format’s judges were using for his or her scoring, he would have focused exclusively on throwing to the top.
“They hyped that up, ‘Oh, he [Shakur] can stand within the pocket now.’ He’s standing within the pocket because there’s no danger,” said Garcia. “Should you really know boxing, you already know that Zepeda doesn’t have any power in his shots.”
Zepeda got here near knocking Stevenson down in round three when he landed a right hand that caused him to fall backward to the side. Although Stevenson denied being hurt and almost taking place, the slow-motion replays showed Zepeda landing a tough right hand that caused him to fall.
“If I fought Zepeda, I’d let him throw punches and dodge with my shoulders and just crack him one time hard,” said Garcia. “You’ll be able to let him throw, throw, throw, and wait for a superb shot. That’s what he [Stevenson] was doing. Wait, wait, wait, boom.”
Zepeda could be a tough fight for Ryan as well. That wouldn’t be easy work like he says. Ryan would must move consistently to avoid being overwhelmed by the shots. If he just stood along with his back against the ropes like Shakur did, he would want to count on the judges to filter out the body attack from Zepeda. It’s asking so much to assume the judges will rating the fight as if it were an amateur contest reasonably than an expert one.
Stevenson’s Perceived Weakness
“Edwin De Los Santos is a tough hitter. He [Shakur] would also have a hard time with Rolly,” said Garcia. “You’re feeling his hands. It’s going to place you on edge. When Shakur is on edge, he don’t look that good. His skills that you just saw against Zepeda won’t come out. He can’t just sit within the pocket like Floyd does. He must be moving. There’s an enormous difference, and it’s not going to look good.”
It might be difficult for Stevenson to fight off the ropes against an enormous power puncher like Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero. The large size of Rolly would make things difficult for Stevenson if he selected to fight stationary. Rolly resembled a junior middleweight in size after rehydrating for his welterweight fight against Ryan Garcia on May 2, 2025, at Times Square in Recent York.
Shakur’s Three Division Title Wins
- Edwin De Los Santos: WBC 135-lb ttle on November 16, 2023
- Jamel Herring: WBO 130-lb belt on October 23, 2021
- Joet Gonzalez: WBO 126-lb belt on October 26, 2019
Garcia’s Prediction: ‘He’d Run’
“Me and Shakur? I’d give it to him. I need that because those punches aren’t going to harm. Similar to Devin Haney,” said Garcia. “I just be certain every punch I throw, Shakur would feel it. He wouldn’t like being within the ring with me. He’s going to be running, running, and running. I’m going to must chase him down and hunt him. What do the judges wish to see. I just feel there’s a way of favoritism for the guy who’s running right away.”
Last Updated on 08/29/2025