Shakur Stevenson Signing With Matchroom Could Mean Good Things, But Maybe Only For Stevenson

By now, most everyone has heard that WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson has signed a promotional agreement with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing.

It’s still unclear whether this is a one-fight deal, per previous rumors, or if the arrangement is of the multi-fight variety. [WRITER’S NOTE: After posting this article, Hearn revealed that Stevenson has entered into a two-fight deal with Matchroom]

The one sure thing in this deal, however, is that Stevenson will be fighting Joe Cordina October 12 on the Beterbiev-Bivol undercard in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“I am ready to start this next chapter of my career and it begins on October 12 with Joe Cordina on the stacked Riyadh Season card in Saudi Arabia,” Stevenson said via press release on Thursday.

“I’ve made it clear that I want the biggest names and the biggest fights in the sport. Bring on William Zepeda at the top of 2025 and I’m ready for anyone who is brave enough to step in the ring with me. There have been few willing to take on that challenge in recent years.

“With Matchroom and Riyadh Season, I am teaming up with a promotional force that matches my world class talent. We will be unstoppable in and out of the ring, and I will continue to show my dominance for many years to come in the sport of boxing.”

One does question, however, whether signing with Matchroom will get him the big fights he claims to want or just several lesser fights for an inflated purse. The Cordina fight– and Stevenson’s own tweets regarding “chasing that bag” and his dwelling on the boxing-as-business angle— raises suspicions that Stevenson’s goal may be closer to the latter than the former.

Although the William Zepeda fight has been brought up continuously in connection with Stevenson’s future plans– even in the press release announcing the Stevenson Matchroom signing– there’s legitimate reason to believe that Team Zepeda simply does not want their guy to fight the highly-skilled stylist. On two separate, highly public, occasions, Zepeda’s promoter Golden Boy has walked away from a Stevenson bout. Even now, as Stevenson’s no. 1 contender and mandatory challenger, his people have apparently opted to not force the fight, instead pointing to the fighter’s desire to spend time with his pregnant wife.

The deal with Matchroom and apparent alignment with Saudi Arabian interests does, however, seem to move Stevenson further away from the biggest money fight out there for him, against Gervonta “Tank” Davis, who has thus far eschewed business dealings with the Saudis.

Whatever the case, bringing Stevenson aboard is a big vanity signing for Hearn and Matchroom and a big deal for the Saudi interests looking to increase their influence in the American market. Hearn recently brought Jaron “Boots” Ennis into his promotional company, while Saudi figurehead Turki Alalshikh has made Terence Crawford a “global ambassador” for the Saudi Riyadh Season initiative. It remains to be seen, however, whether Stevenson can be a money-maker for Matchroom, especially if the goal is to keep him showcased outside the US. With former promoter Top Rank, he was the company’s top ESPN TV draw during the last year or so, but was never considered a major revenue generator and was never seriously shopped a a pay-per-view star.

“I am delighted to welcome what I believe is a pound-for-pound great to the Matchroom team,” Hearn said via press release.

“Shakur Stevenson is 27 and already a three-division world champion and might be unbeatable in the sport of boxing.

“This young man should be a global superstar, and I believe with our machine behind him, he will land all the big fights and receive all the credit that he deserves.

“The journey begins on October 12 in Riyadh on a huge card, and we cannot wait for the future together.”

Time will tell what that future holds.