Shakur Stevenson names the one boxer who avoided fight with him after sparring session

Shakur Stevenson believes he never fought Vasyl Lomachenko because of their previous duel in sparring.

Stevenson right now is one of boxing’s hottest properties, sitting in the upper echolons of the pound-for-pound rankings.

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The American has made a splash in several different weight classes, winning world titles in four already.

His latest saw him scoop super-lightweight honours, beating Teofimo Lopez with a sensational display, arguably the biggest name scalp of his career.

Throughout his time at the top, Stevenson has been linked with some of the biggest names past and present including Ryan Garcia and Gervonta Davis.

But a fight which never materialised was one with Ukrainian icon Vasyl Lomachenko, who recently announced his retirement from boxing.

And Stevenson believes he left a mark on the former world champion in sparring during their rise, which steered his rival away from a professional meeting.

He said on Joe Rogan’s podcast: “I messed myself up. I kind of did this to myself, so I understand why a lot of fighters wouldn’t fight me.

“A lot of fighters wouldn’t fight me because I sparred them, and I messed myself up. Like when I was trying to spar with him [Lomachenko] at that time, I never thought it would be a day when me and him would be fighting.

“Like I didn’t think that far down the line. I really was just thinking he was the best fighter in boxing, number one pound-for-pound.”

On how the session went, Stevenson added: “I felt like I was outboxing him.

“But I also knew the level he was on was like his conditioning. And that’s when it made me be like, ‘Okay, I got to be in, like, tip-top conditioning’.

“Because the first day we sparred, we did six rounds. I feel like it was like, ‘Okay, I can outbox him.’”

What is next for Shakur Stevenson?

Stevenson has numerous options after sinking Lopez in a sensational fight.

It was expected he would return to 130lbs where he still held the WBC title, but unfortunately he was stripped of the crown.

However, there are still a number of big fights on the table including a showdown with WBC welterweight champion Garcia.

The pair could meet in the middle in terms of weight, given they are two of the biggest names in US boxing.

Conor Benn was also called out by Stevenson immediately after his victory over Lopez.

The Briton recently signed with Zuffa Boxing, but is unlikely to boil down to meet the American any lower than 147lbs.