Oscar De La Hoya Crowns Boxing's Most Skillful Fighter: "He's On Another Level"

Oscar De La Hoya has crowned Shakur Stevenson as the most skillful fighter on the planet. The former boxing champion and current promoter shared his thoughts on Stevenson's abilities and a potential fight with William ...

De La Hoya knows a thing or two about skill in the ring. He won gold at the 1992 Olympic Games and went on to grab world titles in six weight classes. He beat the likes of Julio Cesar Chavez and Ike Quartey, and lost to Felix Trinidad, Shane Mosley, Bernard Hopkins, Floyd Mayweather, and Manny Pacquiao. Now, he's promoting fighters like Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez, Ryan Garcia, and William Zepeda.

In an interview with Fight Hype, De La Hoya didn't hold back in his praise for WBC Lightweight Champion Stevenson:

"Shakur, right now, skill-wise, is probably the best fighter on the planet today. Tremendous skills."

Stevenson's a master of the 'hit and don't get hit' strategy. But he's faced criticism lately for less entertaining fights, with routine points wins becoming more common than stoppages.

De La Hoya thinks his fighter, William Zepeda, could be just what Stevenson needs. Zepeda's undefeated and ranked as the number one contender with all four sanctioning bodies. At 28, the Mexican lightweight's known for his relentless pressure and impressive gas tank.

"I don't think anybody will get in the way of that fight. I'm Zepeda's promoter and I actually want to make that fight," De La Hoya said. "It's a huge fight. I will make that fight."

De La Hoya's not the only one pushing for this matchup. Turki Alalshikh of Riyadh Season has shown interest too. And Stevenson? He's not shying away from it.

But there's a catch. Stevenson needs to prove he can sell tickets. Zepeda might be the perfect opponent for him, as Stevenson's said he fights to the level of his competition.

You can check out Zepeda's full record on BoxRec to see why this could be such an exciting matchup.

With De La Hoya's backing and Stevenson's skills, this potential lightweight clash could be one for the books. We'll have to wait and see if it comes together.