Valdez vs Stevenson: What time is fight, undercard, prediction, latest odds and ring walks tonight

Oscar Valdez and Shakur Stevenson fight in Las Vegas tonight in what is a huge unification showdown at super-featherweight.

Not since Mexican icon Marco Antonio Barrera - set to return in an eight-round exhibition against Ricky Hatton this summer - defeated Robbie Peden at the same MGM Grand venue in 2005 has there been a unified champion in the men’s 130lbs division.

But that will all change tonight, with ultra-talented favourite Stevenson hoping to catapult himself firmly into boxing superstardom as he sets his sights on becoming one of the sport’s biggest draws.

The undefeated 2016 Olympic silver medallst became a two-weight world champion aged just 24 in October, when he produced a ferocious and dominant display to dethrone WBO super-featherweight title-holder Jamel Herring, who had sent Carl Frampton into retirement in Dubai earlier in the year.

Stevenson had previously held the WBO featherweight belt after outpointing Joet Gonzalez in 2019, later vacating to step up a level.

Looking to cause an upset and stop the Newark southpaw’s rise is Mexico’s undefeated Valdez, who has held the WBC super-featherweight title since his stunning stoppage of Miguel Berchelt in February 2021.

The 31-year-old has provided one defence, controversially edging Brazil’s 2016 Olympic champion Robson Conceicao in Arizona last September. The fight was allowed to happen despite Valdez testing positive for the VADA-banned central-nervous stimulant phentermine, with the champion cut, bruised and outlanded but taking a divisive win on the scorecards.

Valdez is a veteran of nine world title bouts in total, having also held the WBO belt at 126lbs and defended it six times - including against England’s Scott Quigg in 2018.

Valdez vs Stevenson