O’Shaquie Foster has made his intentions clear: a fight with Shakur Stevenson is the matchup he wants more than any other. Fresh off a unanimous decision win over former two-division champion Stephen Fulton Jr. in December, Foster says a showdown with Stevenson is inevitable and hopes it can take place close to home, in the Houston area where both fighters train.
“He is No. 1 on my hit list,” Foster said. “I am dead serious - that is who I want.” The 32-year-old believes their paths are destined to cross, even as Stevenson continues to climb the sport’s pound-for-pound ladder.
Stevenson recently added another accolade to his résumé by outclassing Teofimo Lopez Jr. to win the WBO junior welterweight title, becoming a four-division world champion in the process. Although he was stripped of his WBC lightweight title soon after, the Newark native remains one of boxing’s most sought-after names, with questions lingering over which weight class he will campaign in next.
Foster isn’t concerned about the logistics. “It doesn’t matter where he goes,” he said of Stevenson. “I am going up north anyway.” Currently holding the WBC junior lightweight title, Foster has also flirted with lightweight, briefly becoming interim WBC champion there after the Fulton win. Whether he stays at 130lbs or moves up will depend on the opportunities available. “I could still make 130lbs,” he added.
While Foster hopes to return as soon as April or sometime in the summer, he admits the pursuit of Stevenson may be one-sided for now. “I got a feeling he is going to pursue other big names,” Foster said. “I feel like he’d rather me not be in his way.”
Image Credit: WBC