Shakur Stevenson and Edwin De Los Santos are scheduled to fight for the vacant WBC lightweight title 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.
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