Robert Garcia has used the word nobody in boxing wants attached to them, and he has aimed it at Shakur Stevenson.
Garcia trains Raymond Muratalla, the IBF lightweight champion who beat Robson Conceicao this month and is moving up to 140 pounds. Speaking to FightHype, he made the case that his man is the only fight left for Stevenson if Devin Haney falls through.
If the Haney fight doesn’t happen, what other fight is there for Stevenson? I think Raymond is the perfect opponent, great clash of styles.
He then drew a line, and the condition he attached to it is the story.
I think Raymond is much bigger and much stronger than Zepeda. If Shakur gets the Haney fight, we can’t argue. We can’t say he’s ducking Muratalla.
But if he’s saying the Muratalla fight has to be at 135, then he’s ducking a little bit.
The Zepeda comparison is pointed. William Zepeda took Stevenson the full twelve in July 2025 and gave him arguably the hardest night of his career, and Stevenson still won every round on the cards.
Stevenson took the WBO super-lightweight title off Teofimo Lopez in January to become a four-division champion, and has said he is open to opponents at 140 or back down at 135. He signed a multi-fight deal with Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing and has not yet made his debut for the promotion.
Haney, meanwhile, appears to be moving toward a unification with Liam Paro rather than anything with Stevenson.
