Shakur Stevenson retains lightweight belt, defeats Artem Harutyunyan in final Top Rank fight

NEWARK, N.J. — Heading into the final fight of his Top Rank promotional contract, Shakur Stevenson had to turn in a performance that erased the bad taste that the Edwin De Los Santos snoozer had left in boxing fans’ mouth. A thrilling victory over a durable veteran would only help to boost his marketability as he approached free agency.

Artem Harutyunyan wasn’t willing to play the foil, however.

Stevenson retained the WBC lightweight title by unanimous decision, defeating Harutyunyan by unanimous decision at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. by the scores of 119-109, 118-110, 116-112. Though there was never any doubt about the outcome, it was far from the performance some would have hoped for.

Stevenson, 27, is leaving with his belt, but not the momentum that will spark talk of big money fights with the likes of Gervonta “Tank” Davis.

After a quiet start that even saw the hometown fans boo in round three, Stevenson (22-0, 10 knockouts) turned on the jets in round four, ripping Harutyunyan to the body with left hands that began to produce red marks on Harutyunyan’s midsection. Stevenson turned it up another notch in the sixth and seventh, walking Harutyunyan (12-2, 7 KOs) down and rocking him with left hand counters that threatened to break his face, if not his will.

By the eighth round, the fans were once again booing, only this time they were booing Harutyunyan’s unwillingness to engage, as the left hands to the body began taking their toll. By the tenth round, the spite had left Stevenson’s left, and his right hook, which he had used sparingly earlier the fight, became more of a scoring option.

The crowd booed again in round eleven, and droves of fans began making their way to the exits before the twelfth round began. Stevenson gave one last burst of offense with one minute remaining in the twelfth, but both parties seemed to accept that this was heading to the scorecards.

Stevenson, who turned pro under the Top Rank banner in 2017 after earning silver at the Rio Olympics the previous year, had called for fights against Davis or his no. 1 contender William Zepeda (31-0, 27 KOs), who scored a third round knockout against Giovanni Cabrera earlier in the night in Ontario, Calif.

Those fights may be easier to make now that Stevenson can deal directly with the aforementioned boxers’ promoters. Stevenson, who is managed by James Prince, seemed uncertain when asked what he planned to do next, other than remaining resolute that he wants the best challenges available.

“I want to fight the best fighters in boxing. That’s how you’re gonna get to see the best version of me, when you put me in there with somebody else who fights back,” said Stevenson.

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