Tag: featherweight

UFC on ESPN 8’s Edson Barboza on move to featherweigh

Edson Barboza details reason behoind move to featherweight to find ‘new challenges’ at UFC on ESPN 8

Edson Barboza details reason behoind move to featherweight to find ‘new challenges’ at UFC on ESPN 8

Shakur Stevenson likely to face Miguel Marriaga: report

Shakur Stevenson is headed to his first featherweight title defense against Miguel Marriaga, according to the Athletic.

Fresh off his title-winning effort last October, featherweight Shakur Stevenson wasted no time calling out Josh Warrington for a unification bout.

Turns out that matchup will likely have to wait.

The 22-year-old southpaw from Newark, New Jersey is projected to face Miguel Marriaga at Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theatre in New York, perhaps on March 14, according to The Athletic.

The news arrives after Top Rank promoter Bob Arum said he would present Stevenson’s handlers – James Prince and Andre Ward – with two offers for the spring: either a Warrington fight, in Leeds, England, Warrington’s hometown, or main event at MSG.

Encouraging signs that a deal would get done seems to have given way to acrimony, as Stevenson and Warrington engaged in a small spat on social media recently. Stevenson, in particular, hinted that money issues were at play. 

https://twitter.com/ShakurStevenson/status/1211017306484150273

https://twitter.com/ShakurStevenson/status/1212576847004938240

Stevenson (13-0, 7 KOs) outpointed Joet G26.onzalez to win a vacant 126-pound title on Oct.

Marriaga (29-3, 25 KOs), a hard-hitting and durable Columbian journeyman, has reeled off four consecutive wins since notching back-to-back losses to Oscar Valdez and Vasiliy Lomachenko.

Josh Warrington: ‘Negotiations have started’ for Shakur Stevenson fight

Josh Warrington, IBF featherweight titleholder, has confirmed that talks have begun for a unification with WBO titlist Shakur Stevenson.

The boxing world could benefit from more title-unification fights and a highly attractive one might be in the works for 2020.

Josh Warrington said that talks have begun for a unification fight with fellow featherweight titleholder Shakur Stevenson.

“I know that negotiations have started,” Warrington said in an interview with BoxingScene.com.

The 29-year-old Warrington, a big draw in his native Leeds, won a portion of the featherweight crown by outpointing Lee Selby in May of last year. He has successfully defended his belt three times, against Carl Frampton, Kid Galahad and most recently Sofiane Takoucht, whom he knocked out in two rounds.

Stevenson, 22, picked up another 126-pound title last month in a dominating points victory over Joet Gonzalez. That title had been vacated by Oscar Valdez.

“He’s a young lad,” Warrington (30-0, 7 knockouts) said of Newark’s Stevenson. “He has a lot of people around him who are going to build his confidence up. I did say to him, ‘Win a title and we’ll talk,’ so he has won a title and we’ll see what happens.”

For his part, Stevenson has been actively campaigning for a fight with Warrington on social media.

The fight would be a classic example of the bull vs. the matador, with Warrington applying his customary torrid pressure and Stevenson (13-0, 7 KOs) working clinically behind his jab and sharp counters.

Both Stevenson and Warrington are promoted by Top Rank (Warrington is co-promoted by Frank Warren), so there are none of the typical promotional or network impediments standing in the way.