LAS VEGAS: ProBox TV analyst and ESPN commentator Timothy Bradley said he heard Shakur Stevenson may have carried an injury into the ring Thursday ahead of his world title fight against Edwin de los Santos.
Stevenson left the ring with a decision win over de los Santos, as well as the WBC lightweight title, but he will have earned few fans having engaged in one of the more boring championship bouts in the modern era.
ProBox TV heard boos in every round from the second round through to the end of the fight, with some fans even leaving their seats and exiting the arena during the show.
But, according to Bradley, a possible reason for Stevenson's apparent unwillingness to throw too many punches was because he had damaged his left hand in a sparring session during his training camp.
"This guy [de los Santos] can punch with either hand and [Stevenson] truly felt that," said Bradley backstage to ProBox TV and other reporters.
"He was extremely cautious throughout the fight, plus he said he didn't feel well. I don't know what was going on with him, how he was feeling."
According to Compubox data sent to ProBox TV, neither fighter threw double digit shots in a single round, Stevenson only landed 65 punches in the entire fight, while de los Santos broke a 38-year Compubox record for landing the least amount of shots in a 12-round bout — 40.
Stevenson, Bradley said, "only threw like 27 left hands, and what I heard was that his hand was hurt. His hand was hurt, one of his sparring sessions, so that might be a reason he didn't throw the left hand."
Despite the unsatisfactory title win, Bradley said he was not going to hold the performance against Stevenson, adding that a fight he really wants to see next, more than any other for Stevenson, is one involving Gervonta 'Tank' Davis.
"Tank is the guy I want to see Shakur fight next," said Bradley.
"However, I already know what's going to be. Shakur knows he'll have to take short money. They'll say, 'You don't sell out no arenas, run all night.'
"I still want to see who wins that battle," Bradley finished. "My money's on Shakur. I could be wrong — Tank is an animal, but he's not been in the ring with a guy that's as smart as Shakur."
