Fight time is less than a week away and Shakur Stevenson is locked in. Posted in the boxing-friendly confines of Las Vegas, he’s prepped and ready for war, having hurled as many barbs at his opponent — Jamel Herring — as is possible leading up to their pending battle at 130 lbs. When prompted, the Newark-bred boxing dynamo took another jab at Herring — the current champ — who seeks to defend his WBO super featherweight title on Saturday, Oct. 23 in Atlanta.
You and Herring have exchanged some words leading into your fight. Is there actual beef between you two? Any history behind it that we should know about?
Nah, I ain’t got no beef with dude. I don’t really care for dude like that. I don’t really know dude like that. At the end of the day, I saw him around. He talked a little, but he weird to me. But other than that I ain’t got no beef with that dude.
You say he’s weird to you?
Yeah, he weird – real weird. Just one of the weird dudes. It’s like … say your kid you know you got them people in school that are just corny … that one corny dude who does the [corniest] stuff. Like that’s weird to me, so that’s how I look at it.
What’s the most thrilling aspect of boxing to you? Is it actual combat? Is it having a vendetta against somebody and selling it? Is it knocking someone out?
I think the best part about it would be getting in the ring and boxing, showing what you can do. I was actually in the gym with Tyson fury and seeing him spar. Then I seen him fight and watching that and seeing how it transitioned into the ring, really kind of show me greatness. I feel like that’s the best part about boxing, is being able to do something in the gym and then going to the boxing ring on fight night and doing exactly what you were doing in the gym.
What was it about your grandfather’s advice that resonated with you so much?
My grandfather got me to where I’m at. Since a kid, he kind of told me boxing is the art of hitting without getting hit. And as I got older, it kind of stuck with me for the rest of my career. That advice right there was like one of the main reasons why I am who I am [and why I’m] one of the best boxers in the sport: It’s the art of hitting without getting hit, swimming without getting wet. That’s what got me to where I’m at right now.
Talk to me about Atlanta and what intrigues you about the city. Why do you want to fight in Atlanta?
I love Atlanta. I’m a young black fighter. I feel like they show love. I feel like they show a lot of love to young Black fighters like me. Atlanta is a hell of a city to host a fight and I’m glad to be fighting in Atlanta.
