"Although Stevenson was more accomplished as an amateur, with a sparkling career that culminated in a silver medal at the 2016 Olympic Games, and a supremely gifted ring tactician with tremendous upside, Stevenson wasn't included in the new quartet. It may be apt to frame Stevenson (24-0, 11 KOs) as this generation's version of Wilfred Benitez, the uncrowned fifth king of the 70s and 80s, who possessed extraordinary defense and defeated Duran while also facing Leonard and Hearns."
"But Stevenson isn't trying to hear any of that noise. He believes he doesn't deserve to be on the periphery of boxing royalty -- he is boxing royalty. And the hunt is on to knock the crowns off those put ahead of him and stake his claim as the king of this era of boxers. "I felt disrespected during that time," Stevenson told ESPN as he prepares to face Lopez, the WBO junior welterweight champion, on Saturday at New York's Madison Square Garden."
Shakur Stevenson grew up in Newark as the eldest of nine and has chased respect from family, fans, and boxing peers. He earned a 2016 Olympic silver medal and developed as a gifted ring tactician with significant upside. Despite amateur success, he was excluded from the era's promoted "Four Kings" of Haney, Garcia, Gervonta Davis and Teofimo Lopez Jr. Stevenson views himself as an uncrowned contemporary akin to Wilfred Benitez but rejects that peripheral characterization, insisting he is boxing royalty. He aims to defeat those ranked above him, use perceived slights as motivation, and prove his claim by facing Lopez at Madison Square Garden.
Read at ESPN.com
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