“I will drop the battle of Zepeda for the Tank”: Shakur Stephenson calls Jevonta Davis

Shakur Stevenson says that if Gervonta Davis agrees to fight him, he will drop plans to defend the WBC lightweight title from interim champion William Zepeda. If he says that another fight is planned for the Tank, he advances a clash with Zepeda.

Social media fans have pointed out that Shakur (23-0, 11 Kos) had the opportunity to compete with Tank Davis before, but he blew the chance. Now he must live with his choice and take the fight he can get before abdicated.

Newark demands

It remains to be seen whether Shakur promoter Eddie Khan can tell him the fight of Zepeda he wants, as if Saudi Arabia is not involved, the money needed for that fight is not there.

Hearn says he hopes Zepeda (33-0, 27 Kos) will agree to fight in his hometown of Newark, New Jersey. Zepeda is so popular that he is too popular to put himself in a position where he can be taken away if the contest approaches.

“If I could happen next, I’d take the tank, but the battle that has already presented itself is Zepeda,” Shakur told Dazen Boxing when asked who he wanted to fight next. “If the tank says ‘Let’s fight,’ I drop that s*** and we can ring. But if he’s doing something else, I’ll ring Zepeda.

Shakur has mentioned the tank’s name since it arrived at Lightweight in 2023, but he has not made any move to fight the killers that the king of the division would take seriously.

Stevenson uses Davis’s name for promotional purposes to generate fake interest in his career without having to fight a high-risk fight. We have consistently seen Shakur take an easy path instead of a hard pass. When he fought decent opponent Edwin de los Santos, he ran from him in the 12th round and was booed from the T-Mobile venue.

Shakur’s Opposition at 135

– Josh Padry
-Artem Harutyunyan
– Edwin de los Santos
– Shuichiro Yoshino

“I’m fighting in Newark, I’m fighting in Vegas. Zepeda wants to fight everywhere. “That’s what I want. He’s a fighter hell. He’s the (WBC) interim (lightweight) champion. I’m a major champion. I’m a real champion, so he wants to be a champion.”

.@shakurstevenson He says he’ll fight @gervonta Next! 🔥#ennisstanionis | I currently live in Dazn pic.twitter.com/zrtbuuvtlr

– Dazn Boxing (@Daznboxing) April 13, 2025