Shakur Stevenson Set to Open 2018 in Impressive Fashion Feb 16th

Published by Shawn C.

(COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO.) – From 2013 through 2015, 2016 Olympic silver
medalist and featherweight prospect *Shakur Stevenson *(Newark, N.J.) (4-0,
2 KOs) opened his competitive year in Reno, Nev. He will return to that
tradition in 2018, kicking off the year in an eight-round featherweight
contest versus *Juan Tapia *(Brownsville, Texas) (8-1, 3 KOs) on Friday,
February 16 at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino’s Grand Theater.

Competing in Reno has always been a good luck charm of sorts for Stevenson
with his run to both Junior and Youth World titles, a Youth Olympic Games
gold medal and even his berth in the 2016 Olympic Games all beginning with
domestic competitions in the “Biggest Little City in the World.” The Grand
Sierra will also be a familiar venue for Stevenson who earned three
straight Junior and Youth Open titles in the hotel as a teenager.

It’s only fitting that he prepares for his return to Reno and first
eight-round bout at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.,
where the new USA Boxing training facility now showcases an action shot of
the 20-year-old proudly on the gym wall.

Stevenson is training for his fifth professional fight with coach Kay
Koroma and alongside the USA Boxing National Team, which includes three
teammates from his home gym, the Alexandria Boxing Club in Alexandria, Va.
He even enjoyed a special visit from Olympic gold medalists Andre Ward and
Claressa Shields earlier in his training camp and Ward, Stevenson’s
co-manager, will be ringside for Stevenson’s bout on February 16.

He looks forward to kicking off 2018 in impressive fashion after scoring
four professional wins in 2017, including two TKO victories in New York,
near his hometown of Newark. He hopes to be even busier in 2018 as he works
toward his goal of becoming a World Champion.

Stevenson and his team will conclude training camp this weekend and travel
to Reno on Monday in preparation for his February 16 bout. His fight will
take place on the undercard of the Ray Beltran – Paulus Moses World
Championship fight which will be televised on ESPN at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.