Shakur Stevenson headlines at the Virgin Hotels, Las Vegas for only the second boxing event at the venue.
Stevenson heads into the bout with a perfect record of 15-0 (8KO), challenging for the WBO interim super featherweight world title after his recent move up in weight class.
During the pandemic era, Shakur fought twice winning dominating every round against Felix Caraballo, before stopping him in round six, and Toka Kahn Clary, winning most recently by unanimous decision in December 2020.
‘Fearless’ by name, fearless by nature, the 23-year-old was vocal in wanting to face the WBO world champion, Jamel Herring after he defeated ‘The Jackal’ Carl Frampton sending the Irishman into retirement.
However, instead he will have to wait for that shot as he will instead face Jeremiah Nakathila for the interim title which will put the winner in pole position for Herring.
Nakathila travels to Las Vegas to fight in the USA for the very first time, and only the second time in his career fighting outside of Namibia.
Only one loss on the record of the 31-year-old but that did occur when he fought outside of his home country facing Evgeny Chuprakov in Russia.
Stevenson vs Nakathila – Date, Venue, Start Time & Ring Walks
- Stevenson and Nakathila will clash on Saturday June 12, 2021 at the Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, Las Vegas, USA.
- The undercard will begin at approx 01.00am BST on Sunday morning.
- Stevenson and Nakathila are set to ring walk any time from 03:00 – 04:00am BST on Sunday morning, subject to change.
Stevenson vs Nakathila – How to watch the fight
- Stevenson vs Nakathila has yet to have a UK broadcaster, however it seems likely that Sky Sports will show the show as the first offering of their new partnership with Top Rank.
Stevenson vs Nakathila – undercard
- Jose Pedraza v Julian Rodriguez
- Xander Zayas v Larry Fryers
- Tyler McCreary v Manuel Rey Rojas
- John Bauza v Christon Edwards
- Bryan Lua v Frevian Gonzalez
- Troy Isley v LaQuan Evans
- Kasir Goldston v Maurice Anthony
- Jahi Tucker v Ysrael Barboza
Press Conference Quotes
Bob Arum
“A year ago, when we started the ‘Bubble,’, you know who was the first main event? It was Shakur Stevenson. And now, thank God the Bubble is behind us. Shakur is the first main event we’ve done here in Nevada [at 100 percent capacity]. I’m very pleased that I’ve been able to do it.
“Shakur knows that as his body of work increases, the fights get more difficult and the opponents are looking to knock him off.
“That’s the way boxing has been, and Shakur Stevenson, a lot of experts say he in the coming years will be the face of boxing. We’ll see how he does against a tremendous puncher that he’ll face on Saturday. Every fight at this level is a tough fight. Nobody is a walk in the park.
“Nakathila will give it a go, and I think it will be a very, very exciting fight.”
Shakur Stevenson
“It feels good knowing that Bob thinks I’m the next superstar of the sport, and I have to live up to the hype.
“I just feel like, when I’m at my best, it doesn’t matter who the opponent is. It’s been like that my whole career, since I’ve been an amateur. You don’t know who you’re going to fight in the amateurs. You come up and you just gotta fight people.
“At the end of the day, I listen [to the hype], but you can’t get too hot. You still gotta complete the task. I try to stay in between. I don’t try to listen to everything I hear and go off that. I try to make sure I do what I’m supposed to do. My preparation was good. My weight is good. I’m ready to fight Saturday.”
Jeremiah Nakathila
“First and foremost, I would like to thank Top Rank for the opportunity. I’m coming here for the big one. I never prepared like this for a fight. Come Saturday, I will show it.
“Whoever underestimates me will be surprised come Saturday night.
“All I know is I can knock anybody out in this 130-pound division. I can destroy anybody at 130 pounds. Come Saturday night, Shakur will see how I’m going to destroy him.”
Jose Pedraza
“Julian is a great fighter. He has a lot of power [and is] a young, strong fighter. But as you mentioned, I have the experience and am well prepared for Saturday.
“It would mean a lot to join all the Puerto Rican greats to have won world titles in three weight classes.
“After the loss to Zepeda, I focused a lot more on training and training styles that I’m going to show on Saturday, everything that I’ve been working on.”
Julian Rodriguez
“It’s a pleasure to be here once again. I’m grateful to have fought twice during the pandemic here, thanks to Bob Arum and Top Rank. It’s just another fight for me. It’s a big step up.I had a tremendous camp. Everything went well. No injuries, no nothing. I’m ready to go Saturday.
“I had a lot of great sparring partners throughout camp, but when I was in Vegas, I sparred Yordenis Ugas, a big 147. I trained with Ismael Salas and all those Cuban Olympians, those southpaws. I’ve had hundreds of fights in my life. I’ve been fighting since I was 7 years old, so I doubt he’s going to come out with a style I haven’t seen before. And if he does, I’ll be ready for it.
“There were a few hiccups with the injury that I had a few years ago, but I believe I’m on that top-tier level. A lot of people that were in my class growing up , the same age group, they’re world champions now. I feel like that’s where I belong, and that’s what I am going to prove on Saturday.”
