Prior to securing a fight with contender Eduardo Baez, WBO Featherweight Champion Emanuel Navarrete was reportedly interested in fighting unified super featherweight champion Shakur Stevenson. Unfortunately, negotiations for the bout ultimately fell short.
“There were brief conversations with Shakur’s team but nothing really came of it, at least from his side,” Navarrete told Boxing Scene.
“We were ready on our side, but the fight just never happened.”
All hope is not lost just yet. If Navarrete is able to get by Baez on August 20, he is seemingly interested in revisiting negotiations for the fight.
“Hopefully, we can revisit that conversation after August 20,” he continued.
While Navarrete may be interested in sharing the ring with Stevenson, the New Jersey native may not share the same interest. On September 23, Stevenson will defend his super featherweight titles against Robson Conceição. If he is able to get by Conceição, he may look to move up another weight class.
“Going up to 135 is not out the way and staying at 130 is not out the way. It’s all depending on what I feel and how I feel after this fight,” he told Boxing Scene in July.
If Stevenson moves up in weight, he would have an opportunity to challenge the likes of Devin Haney, Gervonta Davis or Ryan Garcia. On the contrary, he has also expressed interest in fighting fellow super featherweight champions Joe Cordina and Roger Gutierrez. At just over 25 years old, he has a number of options in play.
