Newark's Shakur Stevenson, a champion across three weight classes, is set to defend his WBC lightweight world title for the first time on home soil. His opponent will be Armenian-born German Olympian Artem Harutyunyan.
Stevenson (21-0, 10 KOs) has had a stellar career since winning a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics. At 27, he's already a three-division world champion. He claimed his first world title in 2019 by defeating Joet Gonzalez for the WBO featherweight belt. In 2021, he won the WBO junior lightweight crown by knocking out Jamel Herring and later unified titles by decisively beating Oscar Valdez. Last November, Stevenson secured the WBC lightweight title with a unanimous decision over Edwin De Los Santos and is now set for his first defense.
Harutyunyan (12-1, 7 KOs) won an Olympic bronze medal for Germany in 2016 and turned professional the following year. He quickly amassed a 12-0 record, competing exclusively in Germany and including a victory over then-undefeated Samuel Molina for a regional title. Last July, Harutyunyan made his U.S. debut against Frank Martin, narrowly losing a decision.
Top Rank Boxing on ESPN, presented by AutoZone: Shakur vs. Artem, will be broadcast live this Saturday, July 6, at 8:30 p.m. ET/ 5:30 p.m. PT on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+. The televised quadruple-header will take place at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
The Betting Odds
Bookmakers have pegged Shakur Stevenson as a heavy favorite in his upcoming bout against Artem Harutyunyan on Saturday, July 6, 2024, at the Prudential Center in Newark, United States.
Stevenson is currently listed at 1/28 (-2500) to win outright, reflecting a 91% implied probability of victory. In contrast, Harutyunyan is a significant underdog at 9/1 (+900), indicating a 9% chance of pulling off an upset.
Initially, Stevenson opened as the favorite at 1/25 (-2500), while Harutyunyan opened at 9/1 (+900).
For those betting on specific outcomes, Harutyunyan is 18/1 (+1800) to win by knockout. If you believe Harutyunyan will win by points, the odds are 28/1 (+2800). On the other hand, Stevenson is 83/100 (-120) to secure a victory on the scorecards.
In the co-feature, O’Shaquie Foster will defend his WBC junior lightweight world title against Brazilian Olympic gold medalist and three-time world title challenger Robson Conceição.
Foster (22-2, 12 KOs) had a notable amateur career, including an alternate spot on the 2012 U.S. Olympic team before turning professional later that year. After some early setbacks, he rebounded under trainer Bobby Benton, going on a 12-0 run. He won the WBC world title in February 2023 with a points victory over Rey Vargas and defended it later that year with a dramatic, come-from-behind 12th-round knockout of Rocky Hernandez. Foster is coming off a hard-fought split decision win over Abraham Nova earlier this year.
Conceição (18-2-1, 9 KOs), Brazil's first Olympic boxing gold medalist, turned professional in 2016. His only losses have come in world championship attempts, including a draw against three-weight world champion Emanuel Navarrete last November. In April, Conceição secured a seventh-round TKO victory over Jose Guardado.