By: Sean Crose
“He said yesterday that I am fake,” Robson Conceicao said of Shakur Stevenson after the weigh in for their Friday night fight, “so he shows to the world whose fake – it’s him.” Conceicao was understandably put off by the fact that Stevenson, who held the WBO and WBC junior lightweight titles, missed weight for their bout by over a pound. The 17-1 former gold medalist also made it clear through his interpreter that he felt Stevenson was letting the local fans down, as the fight will go down at the Prudential Center in Newark, Stevenson’s home town. “He should give example for your hometown,” Conceicao said, “and that’s showing the opposite.”
Simply put, Conceicao made it clear he believed that the 18-0 Stevenson wasn’t fulfilling his job requirements as a fighter. “He’s not professional,” said Conceicao, “and so that’s a shame for all the boxing world.” When asked if he felt Stevenson had neglected to take him seriously, Conceicao was quick with a response. “Oh sure,” he said. Yet the Brazilian contender also made it clear that he was brimming with confidence on the eve of the biggest fight of his career. “Even if he had showed the weight,” he said of Stevenson, “I would have taken his belts…(if) it’s from him, it’s from no one, I’m gonna take the belts home.” Fortunately Conceicao still has a chance to win the WBC and WBO belts, even though Stevenson has now been stripped of them.
Conceicao indicated he and Stevenson are simply different people. “I don’t speak too much like him,” Conceicao said, “so I am a professional athlete that do in the ring and do in my sport, not speak too much like him.” It’s obvious Conceicao feels he represents what it means to be a professional boxer. “Tomorrow I’m going to show to the world the professional athlete and fighter that I am,” he said. There are still some fighters that feel boxing requires more than wins on a resume, and Conceicao made it clear, through his interpreter, that he’s one of them.
“Any kind of champion…has to be example for the world,” he said. “He’s not example,” he added, referring to Stevenson. Conceicao will no doubt provide an example of how to shock the fight world if he pulls off the upset against Stevenson Friday night at the Prudential Center. The fight will be aired live on ESPN starting at 10 PM eastern time.