Shakur Stevenson is a free agent after leaving Zuffa Boxing without ever fighting for the promotion. The undefeated four-division champion said in a video on his YouTube channel Monday that he asked for his release and that Zuffa Boxing granted it over the weekend.
Stevenson signed a multi-fight deal with Zuffa Boxing on July 9, which Dana White called “a massive signing” at the time. Uncrowned reported the deal was thought to run well into eight figures. Stevenson (25-0, 11 KOs) has not fought since his January win over Teofimo Lopez, and talks with Devin Haney fell apart over weight earlier this month.
In the video, Stevenson said he spent eight weeks in camp preparing for fights he was told were coming, and none of them materialized. He said he is not mad at anyone and is not pointing fingers, calling it the business of boxing. “I requested to be released from Zuffa Boxing,” he said, adding that the request was granted over the weekend and he is now officially a free agent.
He also said he is going into business for himself. “I am now taking my career in my own hands,” Stevenson said, announcing that he is starting his own promotional company while staying open to working with other promoters and co-promoting across networks.
What Stevenson wants next
Stevenson said his mission has not changed: “the biggest and best fights available” at 135 or 140 pounds, with 140 being the division where he holds his title. That detail stands out. When he signed, ESPN reported he was expected to vacate the WBO belt because Zuffa Boxing has no 140-pound division and a strained relationship with the sanctioning bodies.
A move to 147 pounds, where Haney holds the WBO welterweight title, will come only on his schedule. Stevenson said fans pushing him to be a welterweight should give it a year or two, and that he will get there “on my term and not on nobody else’s.” He was also blunt about the competition: “None of these guys can beat me.”
The Haney talks behind the split
The Haney negotiations were the most visible sign of trouble. Stevenson said on October 16 that after agreeing to 144 and then 145 pounds, Haney’s lawyer emailed that Haney would only fight at 147. Haney responded on X that Stevenson went missing for days and tried to add a rehydration clause. Nothing was signed, and Mike Coppinger had reported that money was the main hold-up once the weight was settled.
Stevenson’s team told Uncrowned’s Ariel Helwani he “has been frustrated as of late.” A Zuffa Boxing response was not available at the time of writing, and terms of the separation have not been disclosed. Stevenson ended the video by telling fans to get their information about him from his own channel.