Shakur Stevenson names the best boxer now that Crawford has retired: “He’s so hard to beat”

WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson has often heralded the talent of his good friend Terence Crawford but now that ‘Bud’ has retired, Stevenson has highlighted the quality of another fighter and labelled him as the best fighter in the sport, besides himself.

Stevenson could soon thrust himself into the conversation as a top five pound-for-pound talent, having maintained an undefeated record whilst winning world titles in three weight divisions ahead of a challenge against Teofimo Lopez for honours in a fourth weight-class.

At present, the top spot is occupied by either Oleksandr Usyk or Naoya Inoue in the eyes of the majority of boxing fans, with both men having become multi-weight undisputed champions whilst remaining unbeaten.

However, in an interview with The Breakfast Club, Stevenson pinpointed unified light-heavyweight ruler Dmitry Bivol as boxing’s best, appreciating the traditional style of the Russian sensation.

“I think that Bivol is one of the hardest fighters to beat because he’s so basic and he mastered the fundamentals of boxing. He keeps his hands up, he keeps his one-two going and he got great footwork.

“He doesn’t just stand there in front of guys all night, he is moving all around and to me, besides myself, I think that he is the best [active] boxer.”

Bivol has undergone 11 months of inactivity since avenging the lone defeat of his career and defeating Artur Beterbiev for the undisputed 175lb title. Although, it is expected that Bivol will return to the ring to face IBF mandatory challenger Michael Eifert this spring.