Shakur Stevenson has long been competing for the recognition he feels he deserves. While he is an amazing boxer, the Newark native lacks notable names in his resume to put him at the very top of his division, at least according to the current lightweight rankings. Gervonta Davis, on the other hand, is quite literally the face of the division and therefore doesn’t face much competition in the rankings.

Naturally, The Ring shared their updated lightweight division rankings, which reflected Davis and Stevenson’s standing in the division. While ‘Tank’ Davis managed to secure the No.1 spot, Stevenson was ranked 3rd after Keyshawn Davis. And it appears the WBC lightweight champion had a lot to say about the rankings on the sidelines of the Ring III press conference in New York.

Highlighting Davis’ last fight against Lamont Roach Jr., which ended in a majority decision draw, Stevenson, said, “So damn, what are we talking about? It ain’t really [anything to] even talk about. It is what it is, I ain’t tripping. It’s funny to me, it’s all jokes. None of that s**t matters.” He added that the only thing he is worried about is his upcoming fight.

Stevenson locks horns with Interim titleholder William Zepeda on July 12th at the Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens. Regardless, ‘Sugar’ also suggested that he can’t blame Gervonta Davis for the rankings because “all of this stuff going on behind closed doors with these high-powered people and they’re making these high-powered decisions.”

Ultimately, despite the competitive nature between them, Stevenson claims to be happy for the Baltimore native. “That’s my brother. At the end of the day, I’m proud of him. I’m happy  to see where he’s at because [I’ve] seen where he came from.” Stevenson further added that he is not looking for credit anymore because he believes that once he gets the credit, it will be taken away eventually.

As Shakur Stevenson reflects on his position in The Ring rankings, his upcoming opponent, William Zepeda, is wasting no time downplaying his abilities.

William Zepeda claims Shakur Stevenson won’t dare to exchange with him

William Zepeda doesn’t believe Shakur Stevenson has the grit to go to war in the ring. Ahead of their July 12 clash for the WBC lightweight title, Zepeda questioned Stevenson’s toughness, saying, “I don’t feel Shakur has the balls that Tevin Farmer has. Tevin Farmer will stand there and fight with you.”

Zepeda, who dropped and narrowly outpointed Farmer in their first bout before winning the rematch more convincingly, respects Stevenson’s ring IQ but insists the Newark native won’t hold his ground. “When Shakur feels my punches, he’s not gonna be like Farmer and stay there and exchange with me,” Zepeda told The Ring.

That said, it appears even though Shakur Stevenson is happy for Gervonta Davis, he can’t help but feel bitter for being ranked under the Baltimore native. Do you think Stevenson deserves a higher ranking in the lightweight division?