Shakur Stevenson vs. Edwin De Los Santos: Fight Odds, Live Stream, Predictions
Shakur Stevenson returns to the ring with a chance to capture another world title on Thursday night. He'll meet Edwin De Los Santos with the WBC lightweight championship on the line at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
De Los Santos will look to shock the world as the two vie for the title that has essentially been vacated as former champion Devin Haney moves up to fight Regis Prograis. He's been named "champion in recess" which means he can come back down and challenge for the belt if he chooses.
Regardless of what's next, this is a great opportunity for Stevenson to grab his third world title and puts him in a great position to get a fight against a more high-profile opponent. That's been difficult for the undefeated 26-year-old thus far.
De Los Santos doesn't qualify, but he's still a quality opponent with a 16-1 record that features 14 knockouts.
Here's a look at all the important information you'll need to catch the fight along with a preview and prediction.
Can Stevenson Set Up a Blockbuster?
For Stevenson, this matchup isn't really about the matchup. A win over Edwin De Los Sanots isn't going to move him up any pound-for-pound rankings. Instead, it's a way to stay active and grab a third world championship.
The real thing that Stevenson needs to increase his star power is a rival with some gravitas. Stevenson is a perfect 20-0 with 10 knockouts and while he's supremely skilled, he has yet to become a box office draw.
Much of that has to do with the fact that he just hasn't fought anyone who can draw an audience themselves. This time, Stevenson was slated to face Vasiliy Lomachenko, but the former champion turned it down. Then Frank Martin pulled out of the fight. It's only grown the frustrations that already existed for Stevenson who hypothesizes that his reputation precedes him.
"It has to do with me having been in the ring with a lot of these fighters," Stevenson told Andreas Hale of The Sporting News. "Being that they've been in the ring with me, they know that I'm the truth. They know who they've been in the ring with and sometimes you'll never forget that."
Whether it's fair or not, the only thing Stevenson can really do is continue to win fights until he is unavoidable to the biggest stars of the division. Another emphatic win over a fighter who is clearly in a lower tier could do the trick.
Can Edwin Dos Santos Turn This Into a Brawl?
Edwin Dos Santos might not be as skilled as Stevenson, but he does bring power to the table. He has more career knockouts than the two-division champion and he will certainly need to set up his power shots if he's going to pull off the upset.
That's going to take some head games in addition to smart pressure from the Dominican slugger.
"He's obeying orders, so when I have something for him, he'll obey as well," De Los Santos told reporters. "He's going to come to try to survive. He's not going to come and try and stand with me because he knows what's going to be in store for him."
De Los Santos is the bigger fighter. He weighed in heavier and has been native to the lightweight division for much longer than Stevenson.
If he's going to pull off an upset, he's going to have to get Stevenson out of his game. If he can it, this fight gets a lot more interesting.
There's a reason why the odds are heavily stacked in Stevenson's favor. Top Rank knows the potential star they have in the two-division champion. Adding another championship to that resume only makes him more marketable.
The bottom line is that Stevenson has the skills to fight in true headliners. If Devin Haney actually comes back for his championship, then a fight between Haney and Stevenson would be competitive with much tighter odds.
Those are the kinds of fights that Stevenson should be getting and he'll show why on Thursday night.
De Los Santos is a great opponent to bring out the best in Stevenson. His aggressive style should set up Stevenson for plenty of counter-punching. Much like his last fight against Shuichiro Yoshino, Stevenson should have no problem picking his opponent apart and finishing him by the middle of the fight.
Prediction: Stevenson via sixth-round TKO
