Shakur Stevenson apologises to three of his ‘boxing idols,’ including Floyd Mayweather, after his ‘bad performance’ against Edwin De Los Santos that had fans booing

• Shakur Stevenson apologises to three of his ‘boxing idols’ on Thursday night
• The American won the WBC lightweight title against Edwin De Los Santos
• Why Anthony Joshua’s next fight plan makes sense for his career: The Hook 

Shakur Stevenson apologises to three of his ‘boxing idols’ following his unanimous decision victory over Edwin De Los Santos.

The American won the WBC lightweight championship on Thursday night against De Los Santos in a fight that had fans booing the lack of action.

Stevenson (21-0, 10 KOs) picked up a title in a third weight class. The Newark, New Jersey, native also won the WBO featherweight title in 2019 and the WBO junior lightweight championship in 2021.

Judges Tim Cheatham and Steve Weisfeld both scored the bout 116-112, while David Sutherland scored it 115-113.

While the 26-year-old did enough to win on the judges scorecards, Stevenson admitted that he wasn’t happy with his performance – with the three-division champion going on to apologise to three boxing legends.

Shakur Stevenson apologises to three of his ‘boxing idols’ following his victory over Edwin De Los Santos

The American won the WBC lightweight championship against De Los Santos in a fight that had fans booing

Speaking after the fight, Stevenson said: ‘I appreciate Floyd Mayweather, I apologise to him, I apologise to Andre Ward, and I apologise to Terence Crawford. 

‘They’re all my idols and they came out to see a great performance, but I put on a bad one.’ 

He also expressed his disappointment with his performance immediately after the fight.

‘Don’t congratulate me on a bad performance,’ Stevenson told reporters shortly after his lacklustre appearance.

‘It just wasn’t me man. I had a lot going on. I ain’t gonna make no excuses. It was a good fight, just a bad performance and not my standards.’ 

Stevenson’s close friend and former two-weight world champion Andre Ward conceded the southpaw ‘looked a bit flat’ and needs to rest after his underwhelming display.

‘I think that he has to go back and reassess… what changes he needs to make,’ mentor and former champion Andre Ward said. 

‘He looked a bit flat tonight. He’ll determine what that reason is.

Stevenson apologised to Floyd Mayweather, Andre Ward (pictured) and Terence Crawford

Mayweather was seen attending Stevenson’s fight with De Los Santos

Stevenson said he’d like to take ‘like two months’ off since he’s been training the past seven months

‘He does need rest… he’s never not in the gym. He’s an elite fighter, and for elite fighters who are used to dominating, when you don’t have a dominating performance, it can almost feel like a loss. 

‘That’s what he’s working through right now. But it’s also good for him, it’s sobering. It just reminds you that the game don’t always love you back.’

While the big question for Stevenson was who he’d fight next, he said he’d like to take ‘like two months’ off since he’s been training the past seven months. 

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