Hot off the heals of signing former two-time Puerto Rican Olympian Jeyvier Cintron, Top Rank, along with Antonio Leonard Productions, announced earlier today that they have also signed highly touted Rio Olympics silver medalist, Shakur Stevenson.
A couple of months ago Stevenson announced that he had signed a managerial deal with James Prince, attorney Josh Dubin and Light Heavyweight champion Andre Ward.
Although Stevenson was courted by many promoters, including Floyd Mayweather‘s Mayweather Promotions, Top Rank has a track record of developing young fighters into stars and this obviously seems to be a good fit.
“Top Rank is the best there is in boxing,” said Stevenson. “Look at their champions — great champions — like Terence Crawford and Vasyl Lomachenko. This is where I want to be.”
“Top Rank has a rich history in building superstars. We thought Top Rank would be the best fit,” said Ward.
“The best days for Shakur begin now, ” said Prince. ” We are excited to align him with Top Rank.”
“Top Rank is where we want to be,” said Leonard.
“He’s young, he has charisma, reminds me of a very young Sugar Ray Leonard and our matchmakers Bruce Trampler and Brad Goodman say Shakur can fight, said Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum. “He will box as a featherweight, the same weight division as Michael Conlan our Irish Olympian.”
“From the outset, Shakur was targeted by Bruce and Brad as one of the most skilled American boxers,” said Todd duBoef, president of Top Rank. “He possesses all the major components to be the total package — great skills matched with a winning personality. That combination bodes well for a very prosperous career.”
Newark came to a standstill each time Stevenson stepped into the ring in his quest to win Olympic gold. On the day he fought Ramirez, “Stevenson Fever” was at its peak. Barry Carter, columnist for the Star-Ledger, reported the following: “At Broad and Market streets, the city put its ’24 Hour of Peace’ rally on hold and set up a big screen for residents to watch the fight.” At the CityPlex 12 Theater in Newark, hundreds of fans and family members wearing t-shirts emblazoned with “In Shakur’s Corner,” crammed in to see the fight, all sitting on the edge of their seats, to watch the live-streamed fight and cheer for their man.
The oldest of nine children, Stevenson, who is named for the late rap star Tupac Shakur, was introduced to boxing by his grandfather, Willie “Wali” Moses, at age 5. Now based in northern Virginia, Stevenson is trained by Kay Koroma.
