Athletes are not born great. Their names echo in stadiums due to a blend of their talent, dexterity, and flare. History is proof that successful athletes typically have a moniker that the public really connects with. Shakur Stevenson, the current WBC lightweight champion, will defend his championship against German boxer Artem Harutyunyan on July 6th. To add a little bit extra to his already impressive reputation, the boxer changed his nickname.

He now wants his new moniker to be recognized, as he believes it identifies with him more. It’s worth noting that this is his third nickname change. Stevenson will be fighting against Harutyunyan at his hometown venue, Prudential Center in Newark. Ahead of his first title defense of 2024, let’s take a look at the monikers he has used until now.

Shakur Stevenson changes his nickname – from ‘Fearless’ to ‘Sugar’

The Newark native is the oldest among nine children and is the only one who entered the sport of boxing. However, he doesn’t want his younger siblings to be a part of this ruthless sport. He got his name ‘Shakur’ after the late rap icon, Tupac Shakur. However, he was destined to be called something else in the realm of boxing – ‘Fearless’.

During the formative years of his professional boxing career, he was considered to be a mix of boxing great Floyd Mayweather and two-division champion Andre Ward. Both Mayweather and Ward were counterpunchers and preferred to use a defensive technique. Stevenson follows the same strategy and hits a counter punch when it is required. This fearless attitude resonated with his personality then, and thus he was known as Fearless. However, he later changed his moniker to ‘Sugar’ in 2023.

While talking about his new moniker, ‘Sugar’, the boxer stated,“It gotta be something like when it gotta come to me the right way. Like when it comes to the right way and you feel it, that’s when it is gonna happen so. That sound cool though, I like it.” Other fighters like UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley and boxing legend Shane Mosley also have the same nickname. Stevenson believes that it resonated well with his personality, and so he nicknamed himself Sugar.

Shakur Stevenson announces another moniker for himself

The nickname game doesn’t end at Sugar. There’s one more name that the boxer has adopted. Although the 27-year-old boxer is undefeated and is arguably a skilled fighter, he has not yet been in a mega against top-notch boxers like Gervonta Davis or Devin Haney. He has been eyeing for these fights for quite some time, but to no avail. In February this year, he shared an old sparring video of himself and even introduced his new moniker to his fans through Instagram.

via Getty

In the video, a young Stevenson displays speed and quickness, landing punches by creating good openings. The Newark native posted the video and introduced his new nickname in the caption, which read, “I’m gon’ introduce ya’ll to Killer Kur. #GtfOutMyWay.” First, it was Fearless, then Sugar, and now Killer Kur.

In the meantime, the crowd did not seem to relish his most recent triumph over Edwin De Los Santos. He was booed during and after the match due to his underwhelming performance despite the win. Now he has the chance to impress the fans and really fight like a killer to live up to his new moniker. What do you think about his nicknames? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.