Stevenson knocked out Conceicao with one second left in the fourth round. There is a time and a place.
At the scales, Stevenson lost his two 130-pound titles, but he still won a unanimous decision over Conceicao in Newark, New Jersey.
Stevenson floored Conceicao with a left hand in the fourth round, and the judges scored the fight 118-110 for Stevenson.
Stevenson said that he killed himself to make weight. I did everything I could, but he held me. Whenever I got to the inside, I think he was holding.
Stevenson was stripped of his titles after he was more than 112 pounds over the division limit. Conceicao was able to win the two belts due to his weight.
The top two competitors in each organization's rankings will compete for the titles in the future.
If the fight hadn't taken place, Conceicao would have earned $200,000 in prize money. Stevenson paid Conceicao a $150,000 financial penalty from his $3 million purse in order to allow the fight to go on.
Stevenson said that everyone wanted that kind of paycheck.
The title bid was Conceicao's second after he lost to Oscar Valdez. Conceicao was at a competitive disadvantage because of the positive test for a banned substance.
| Punches | Stevenson | Conceicao |
|---|---|---|
| Total landed | 199 | 60 |
| Total thrown | 531 | 483 |
| Percent | 38% | 12% |
| Jabs landed | 47 | 5 |
| Jabs thrown | 211 | 104 |
| Percent | 22% | 5% |
| Power landed | 152 | 55 |
| Power thrown | 320 | 379 |
| Percent | 48% | 15% |
| -- Courtesy of CompuBox |
The decision to lose to Stevenson was not disputed.
At age 25, Stevenson became a two-division champion and a pound-for-pound fighter. His southpaw jab set the tone and opened Conceicao's guard for a stinging left hand that inflicted a lot of damage.
Stevenson's shots were more precise and compact as Conceicao dug to the body with effective right hands.
Stevenson's punches disrupted Conceicao's rhythm, a predictable attack that featured bundles of looping right hands. Many of the power shots met their marks, but few seemed to land cleanly or have any effect on Stevenson.
The challenger found more success in Round 3 with some flush left hands delivered from awkward angles.
Stevenson appeared to shift the trajectory of the fight for good when he broke through in the closing moments of Round 4.
After Conceicao was stunned by a powerful left cross from Shakur with 20 seconds left in the round, he walked him down to deliver a devastating hook.
Conceicao bounced back in Round 8 on the strength of a series of flush right hands, but Stevenson's pressure was starting to take its toll.
Stevenson was aggressive down the stretch and usually boxes from the outside. In the ninth round, he was docked one point for tossing Conceicao to the mat.
As Conceicao absorbed the punishment, he began to land more frequently, but he was never in danger of being stopped.
Stevenson said that he knows how to survive because he is awkward. I was fighting. I wanted to hit him. He grabbed and held.
The victory was Stevenson's second of the year and came after a decision win over Valdez. Stevenson got his first 130-pound title after an October 2021 knockout of Jamel Herring.
The fighter conceded he was embarrassed by the mistake he made on Thursday.
Stevenson said that he still finds a way to push through despite his hard times. Conceicaco was rated as the 8th best fighter in the world after a win over X-ray technician.
Stevenson said that he's real tough.
He'll have a lot of time to put it all behind him as he begins his campaign at lightweight, a division that features more talent than Stevenson did.
He said that everyone at 135 lbs must get it. The champ needs to be fought. We can lock it in after he fights Kambosos. I'll fightVasiliy as well.
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