Undefeated and a former two-class world champion, Shakur Stevenson is a massive favorite against Edwin De Los Santos when the two scrap for the vacant WBC lightweight title on Nov. 16 in Las Vegas. It isn’t the fight most expected after undefeated contender Frank Martin backed out, but De Los Santos is a rising star and a formidable opponent that Stevenson can’t afford to take lightly. Making a move to lightweight after titles in lower classes, Stevenson stopped Shuichiro Yoshino with a sixth round TKO last time out. The inability to make weight forced a move up.
Just 23 years old De Los Santos has put together a solid resume winning 16 of 17 fights with 14 of them by KO. Maybe Stevenson wanted to throw a jab (no pun intended) at Martin for turning down the fight or maybe he truly believes what he says when he stated, “I think he’s a harder challenge than Frank Martin,” when discussing De Los Santos. Ranked No. 1 by the WBC, Stevenson opened as a -800 favorite with De Los Santos at +502.
Shakur Stevenson vs. Edwin De Los Santos Betting Odds
Shakur Stevenson -800
Edwin De Los Santos +502
The 12-round bout for the vacant WBC lightweight title between Shakur Stevenson (20-0, 10 KOs) and Edwin De Los Santos (16-1, 14 KOs) will take place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Thursday, November 16 and will be televised on ESPN and ESPN+.
Shakur Stevenson vs. Edwin De Los Santos Fight Preview
Most expected Stevenson to battle Martin for the vacant title, but that deal fell through and promoters reached down their list to scoop up De Los Santos. There’s a reason why the odds are what they are with Stevenson widely considered a top 10 pound-for-pound talent fighting himself out of two lower weight classes. He won the WBO featherweight title with a unanimous decision over Joet Gonzalez in 2019 and claimed the WBO super featherweight crown with a 10th round TKO of Jamel Herring in 2021.
Last year Stevenson missed weight in a super featherweight clash with Robson Conceicao, which he won via unanimous decision, prompting his move to the 135 class. In his first fight at lightweight, Stevenson landed nearly four times as many punches to get a sixth-round TKO win over Yoshino.
That fight showed the defensive skill of Stevenson and why he’s highly regarded in his weight class. I don’t think Stevenson has faced anyone with the raw power displayed by De Los Santos, which could be problematic. But being a better technical boxer and one of the best defenders, Stevenson won’t put himself in a position to get flattened. The betting markets are tricky in this fight. Given his odds there’s no value backing Stevenson for the win. However, pinpointing a method of victory or taking a round helps shorten the odds.
Two things about De Los Santos stand out giving me a glimmer of hope he can pull the upset. First, he has nothing to lose. Remember the movie ‘Rocky’ when the main character was selected as Apollo Creed’s opponent because he was a Philadelphia native and the champ wanted to give a local the chance at fame and stardom? Well, it’s not quite the same, but De Los Santos is a big underdog like Rocky Balboa and also has power behind his blows.
The stone fists have given De Los Santos an impressive KO/win ratio of 87.5 percent, though some of those came against opponents without a win on their record. The only loss came in January 2022 in a split decision to William Foster in what was the first of three bouts against undefeated opponents. Just two months after the loss, De Los Santos KO’d Luis Acosta then stopped Jose Valenzuela. Last time out he scored a dominant unanimous decision win over veteran Joseph Adorno.
Bet Shakur Stevenson vs. Edwin De Los Santos
A step up in competition didn’t rattle De Los Santos, who rebounded from his lone defeat with a career-changing win against Valenzuela. He got up from a second round knockdown sending Valenzuela to the canvas in both the second and third rounds handing the prospect his first defeat. That fight epitomizes his boxing style; an aggressive powerful puncher who goes on the offensive but sometimes forgets to defend. It’s tempting to back De Los Santos at his price, but Stevenson is the better all-around fighter avoiding the heavy fists and wearing down his opponent in the later rounds.
Boxing Odds Pick: Shakur Stevenson / Decision
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