Another weekend, another fantastic boxing match to keep you entertained this Saturday night when Shakur Stevenson makes the move to lightweight to face Shuichiro Yoshino at the Prudential Centre in Newark, New Jersey.
The two undefeated fighters will go head-to-head in a WBC title eliminator, where someone's 0 has got to go in the main event at 135-pounds as both men look to claim a statement win in their careers.
We'll take a look at the fight and provide you with our best free boxing picks to see if we can earn you some extra cash while you watch two of the best in the world scrap it out.
Remember that these bookies offer plenty of betting bonuses and promotions.
Shakur Stevenson vs Shuichiro Yoshino information
- Saturday, April 8th 2023
- Prudential Centre, Newark, New Jersey
- WBC Lightweight title eliminator (135-pounds)
- 12 x 3 minute rounds
- Ring walk scheduled for 23:00 ET
Shakur Stevenson vs Shuichiro Yoshino odds
- Shakur Stevenson - (-2000)
- Shuichiro Yoshino - (+1000)
Shakur will enter the fight as a two-weight world champion, who lost his belts on the scale last time out and still holds a professional record of 19-0, with nine knockouts and ten decisions.
Stevenson's last four fights have been entertaining yet lopsided affairs. He dominated Jeremiah Nakathila to win the vacant WBO interim super featherweight title in a 12 round decision, before winning the WBO super featherweight title with a 10th round KO over Jamal Herring.
He then defended those titles against Oscar Valdez as he claimed a unanimous decision win at the MGM Grand, before defeating Robson Conceicao last time out on the scorecards despite missing weight and losing his titles.
You can bet on Stevenson to claim the victory in his new weight class and retain his undefeated record at -2000, meaning you must bet $2000 to see a $100 return.
He'll be standing across the ring from another undefeated fighter in Yoshino, who holds a professional record of 16-0 with 12 knockouts and four decisions in his career.
Yoshino has won two of his last three fights via knockout, and has been the WBO Asia Pacific and OPBF lightweight champion since 2019. He stopped Shuma Nakazato in the sixth round to retain his Japanese lightweight title, before claiming an 11th round technical decision win over Masayuki Ito following an accidental head clash that cut Ito.
His last performance saw him stop Masayoshi Nakatani in the sixth round back in November 2022 to retain all his titles and set up this mouthwatering clash between two budding stars.
You can bet on Yoshino to cause a huge upset at +1000, meaning you will earn a $1000 profit for every $100 you bet on him to be victorious.
Check out our review for BetUS sports betting here.
Shakur Stevenson vs Shuichiro Yoshino preview
If you are a boxing purist, you probably love to watch Shakur Stevenson go to work in that ring. This 25-year-old has some of the slickest boxing skills that the world has ever seen and he's getting better with every passing performance. It's no surprise to see him compared to all-time great Floyd Mayweather in style and ability at this age, which tells you all you need to know.
Stevenson's greatest attribute is the same as "Money" Mayweather's was - he doesn't get hit. His head movement, defense, footwork and counter punching are among the very best in boxing right now and while he doesn't have the glaring power of some of his peers, it's almost impossible to lose a fight if nobody can hit you.
Yoshino is a totally different style of boxer than Stevenson. He is more powerful, scoring 12 KOs out of his 16 total professional fights, and is six years older.The maturity and power in the body at this weight will be the only advantages that Yoshino has over his opponent this weekend, which explains why the odds sit where they do.
It's believed that this is the first time Yoshino has fought outside of his native Japan as a professional, and it will be the brightest of lights on him in this bout.
Yoshino is very aggressive when he gets in close, ripping hooks and weaving in combinations to keep his opponent guessing, but Stevenson is unlikely to be anywhere near him when he steps forward and as the fight goes on he's likely to start becoming frustrated which will leave him open to being countered.
To put it simply, this is most definitely a mismatch in favor of the American.
Boxing picks: Stevenson to make a statement
The obvious pick here is for Stevenson to outbox Yoshino for 12 rounds and claim a decision victory at -225.
But after losing his belts on the scale last time out, Shakur is likely to want to move up and make a statement that he is a real threat at 135-pounds and that is what he will do.
At a more healthy weight for himself and against an opponent who regularly leaves himself open when going on the attack, Stevenson has every chance of countering his way to victory via a stoppage with his combinations. Back Stevenson to send a message to the division by claiming a late stoppage win against a tired and overwhelmed Yoshino.
Check out our review for BetOnline sports betting here.
