Shakur Stevenson boxes his way to a dominant victory over Oscar Valdez

It was an easy night of work for talented Shakur Stevenson. Utilizing his superior hand and foot speed, Stevenson, dominated Oscar Valdez over 12 rounds to add the WBC and Ring Magazine straps to his collection. 

Scores were 17-110, and 118-109 twice. 

Stevenson, a southpaw, came out jabbing in the opening round. He countered and scored. Valdez edged forward. He fired a right that missed. Stevenson (18-0, 9 KOs) was using his jab as a range finder. He scored with a three-punch combination. Valdez jabbed in round two. Hitting Stevenson is a real challenge. Stevenson clipped Valdez with lefts.  A big right bothered Valdez. WBO champion Stevenson fired a southpaw 1-2. Valdez worked the body well. 

In round three, Valdez (30-1, 23 KOs) ran into a left but scored with a right. Stevenson landed a right to the head. He worked the body. Stevenson moved and popped a three-punch combination. Valdez outfought Stevenson on  the inside. Stevenson went back to work in round four, His left scored numerous times. His sense of range is uncanny. Valdez forced Stevenson into the ropes and fired hooks. Stevenson was back in control in the last twenty seconds of the heat. 

Stevenson clubbed Valdez with a left in round five. He fired accurate combinations. Valdez was waiting too much. A big left hook that whizzed past Stevenson’s head. A counter shot from Stevenson scored.

Valdez fell into the ropes and was floored by a left from Stevenson in round six. He got up shaking his head. Valdez caught Stevenson with a hook. No issues. Stevenson was beating Valdez up. Blood was dripping from a cut under his right eye.  

In rounds seven and eight, Stevenson continued to display his classy boxing. He landed a perfect uppercut. Valdez connected with a hook that had no effect. Stevenson was in complete control. Valdez went back to working the body in round nine. A hard counter combination convinced him that perhaps that wasn’t such a good idea. 

Valdez did some good work on the inside in round 10. Stevenson picked him off with jabs and his own body shots - leaving Valdez frustrated. Realizing he was way behind on the scorecards, Valdez upped the ante in rounds 11 and 12. He did better in the last round, but the crafty Stevenson was always a step faster.

Stevenson said, "This victory means everything. I told ya’ll what I was going to do. I said I’m gonna beat Valdez, Canelo and Eddy Reynoso, so that was my game plan, beat the whole team and I feel good about it. Much respect to them, but that was my game plan."

Keyshawn Davis (5-0, 4 KOs) battered Mexican veteran Esteban Sanchez (18-2, 8 KOs) en route to sixth-round TKO..

Davis said, "He’s a great fighter, and I didn’t realize that until the first round. I said, ‘Whoa, he can fight!’ I knew I had to snap into a different Keyshawn. He’s a great fighter, a real respectful fighter. Hat’s off to Esteban Sanchez. Thank you for this opportunity. We should see a lot of Esteban Sanchez in the future.
 
“I just kept staying steady, staying with my rhythm. My coach, {Brian McIntyre}, kept telling me to go the body. I was trying to stab him a lot in the rounds, and honestly, I was just picking up round after round. I loved this fight because it challenged me. I felt challenged in the ring. I was happy I got a great performance and the stoppage.”

In his best performance to date, middleweight Nico Ali Walsh, ignited the MGM Grand with a brutal first-round knockout over Alejandro Ibarra (7-2, 2 KOs). Ali Walsh (5-0, 4 KOs), the grandson of The Greatest, ended matters with a perfect right hand. 

Ali Walsh said, “I was setting him up with the right hand. I noticed his left hand was going down when he threw the jab. I was trying to counter it, and that’s what I did. I wish the best for him and his team. He’s a true warrior. But I just waited for that setup, and I saw it and I took advantage.”