Shakur Stevenson Convinced That Conceicao Should Be Tougher Matchup “Stylistically” Than Valdez

Initially, Shakur Stevenson exuded an overwhelming amount of confidence in Oscar Valdez’s ability to get the job done against Robson Conceicao. However, when the two met during their September 2021 matchup, Stevenson (18-0, 9 KOs) was stunned by how Conceicao dominated the former two-division belt holder.

However, to Valdez’s credit, he increased his aggressiveness in the second half of their fight, resulting in Conceicao suffering the only loss of his career. With Stevenson just weeks away from facing the Brazilian in his hometown of Newark, New Jersey, the 25-year-old is still baffled by Conceicao’s original game plan against Valdez.

“Personally, I felt like he took his foot off the gas,” Stevenson said during an interview with BoxingScene.com. “He came out on fire in the early rounds, he basically came out on fire. And as the fight went on, I don’t know if he ran out of gas, but he started moving too much. He began to let Valdez gain momentum and Valdez picked up his pace. I thought it might have been a draw.”

In the immediate aftermath of his disputed victory, Valdez would have his champion status stripped from him by Stevenson. Conceicao, on the other hand, has bounced back nicely, notching a unanimous decision win over Xavier Martinez earlier this year.

As the former Olympic silver medalist looks at his pound-for-pound worthy resume, he acknowledges that Conceicao brings a unique style and flavor to the table. Although on paper, it would seem that Valdez should be recognized as his toughest test, considering Conceicao’s overall boxing ability, Stevenson is convinced that he could present even more problems than Valdez did.

“Maybe,” Stevenson said when asked if Conceicao might be a more difficult opponent than Valdez. “Stylistically, it should be, but at the end of the day, you have to be able to adapt to any style. He will try to outplay me, that’s my game at the end of the day.”

While he has been praised for his defensive acumen and overall skills, Stevenson has openly confessed that he is not interested in getting into a back-and-forth mental battle against Conceicao. Instead, the southpaw he skillfully hits plans to manhandle his man, before giving him a memorable beating.

“I don’t even really plan on going there and having a technical boxing match. I’m going to go in there to beat him up.”