Shakur Stevenson vs Josh Padley Preview & Picks
Shakur Stevenson is tipped to retain the WBC lightweight title by knockout.
Stevenson is not renowned for finishing fights, but he is many, many levels above Josh Padley, who is a part-time electrician taking this fight on only a couple of days notice.
- Shakur Stevenson has a perfect 22-0 record
- 9 of Shakur Stevenson’s 10 knockout wins have come inside 6 rounds
- Shakur Stevenson is taking part in the 8th world title fight of his career
- Shakur Stevenson boasts a +20.3 plus/minus (best in boxing)
Shakur Stevenson Form
Shakur Stevenson is the current WBC world lightweight champion with a career record of 22-0 (10 KOs).
Stevenson entered the professional ranks in April 2017 and quickly climbed the ladder, winning his first world title just two-and-a-half years later.
He beat Joet Gonzalez via unanimous decision to win the vacant WBO world featherweight belt.
The 27-year-old did not make a defence of that crown, instead moving up to super-featherweight where he had a successful run, winning multiple belts.
Stevenson forced his way into the title picture with a points win over Jeremiah Nakathila, earning the interim WBO belt, and he then became the full champion with a 10th round knockout of Jamel Herring.
He added the WBC and Ring Magazine belts to his collection in April 2022 when he beat Oscar Valdez via unanimous decision, but his reign proved to be brief.
Stevenson missed weight for a defence against Robson Conceicao, and following that points win he announced his intention to move up to lightweight.
He knocked out Shuichiro Yoshino in the sixth round in his debut, and then went on to claim the vacant WBC title by beating Edwin De Los Santos.
The American made one successful defence of that belt last year, beating Artem Harutyunyan by unanimous decision.
Josh Padley Form
Josh Padley is a British lightweight fighter with an unbeaten professional record of 15-0 (4 KOs).
Padley made his professional debut in April 2019 and has spent the entirety of his career fighting on the domestic scene around England.
The vast majority of those fights have taken place in the vicinity of his native Doncaster, but he does have some experience fighting on a big card.
He faced Mark Chamberlain on the undercard of the Joshua-Dubois fight at Wembley Stadium last September, and was able to come away with a unanimous decision win.