Boxing great Juan Manuel Marquez feels Shakur Stevenson must change his fighting style to be more entertaining for the fans.
The Need for Entertainment
He thinks that WBC lightweight champion Shakur (22-0, 10 KOs) is too “boring” now and needs to make changes to get fans interested in paying to see him fight. That involves putting himself in the line of fire.
Marquez notes that the name of the game in boxing is ‘Hit and don’t get hit, ‘ but you can’t use that style with fans if you want to become a star because they’re paying their money, and they want to see drama-filled fights.
Juan Manuel notes that he had to change his fighting style early in his career, but he did it and became a massive star. He wasn’t afraid to get hit to land his power shots and win fights. However, Marquez had better power than Shakur and more of an ingrained warrior mindset from day one.
Shakur’s Reluctance to Engage
Shakur has never been willing to get in the trenches since his amateur days. He’s always had an aversion to getting hit, and it’s unclear whether he can change that now that he’s 27.
If there were a way of transplanting Marquez’s brain into Shakur, he would be a different fighter. The way he is now, he has a rabbit look when his opponents come forward trying to land. It’s like a wolf is chasing Shakur, and he does not want to hold his ground, even against light punchers.
“People want to see entertaining fights. What happened with Shakur Stevenson?” said Juan Manuel Marquez to the Fight Hub TV YouTube channel, remarking that Shakur Stevenson needed to put on entertaining fights for the fans.
“If he doesn’t have a great opponent, he gives us boring fights. Maybe William Zepeda is a good opponent for Shakur Stevenson, and he’ll make a great fight,” said Marquez.
Marquez has got it wrong. Shakur is more boring when he faces better opposition that can punch. Against weak opposition, Shakur is more aggressive but still far from entertaining. But against fighters with power, he’s unwatchable because he’s moving nonstop, trying not to get hit, and the fans are booing. It’s hard to watch.
The Challenge of Change
“This is the rule, ‘Hit and don’t get hit’ in the ring, but you need to offer the show. You need to offer entertainment for the people,” said Marquez.
“When you put on an entertaining fight, [fans] pay more money [to see you fight] another great opponent. Your career grows. People follow great fighters. You need to make more money in every fight. He needs to fight and grow in the sport.”
Whoever signs the free agent Shakur must understand that he won’t transform into a fighter who entertains because he’s not. This is it.
What you see is what you get with Shakur. He won’t change and will continue to fight like he did for the remainder of his career.
“I needed to change my style. I needed to use my counter-punching and my technical skills,” said Marquez, describing what he had to do during the early part of his career to excel.
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