{"id":799220,"date":"2026-07-14T07:14:22","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T07:14:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/799220\/"},"modified":"2026-07-14T07:14:22","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T07:14:22","slug":"shakur-suggests-he-has-final-say-over-zuffa-opponents-after-rayo-callout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/799220\/","title":{"rendered":"Shakur Suggests He Has Final Say Over Zuffa Opponents After Rayo Callout"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The exchange came after Rayo Valenzuela posted<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\u201cWelcome to Zuffa @ShakurStevenson. I\u2019m your tuneup fight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shakur\u2019s response may have revealed more than he intended.<\/p>\n

By saying, \u201cI have to go say yes remember that,\u201d Shakur appeared to indicate that he has approval over any opponent before a fight can be finalized. Rather than simply rejecting Rayo\u2019s challenge, the comment hinted at how he believes his relationship with Zuffa Boxing works.<\/p>\n

Dana White built the UFC on a model in which the promotion largely controls matchmaking. Fighters can negotiate purses and timing, but they generally don\u2019t choose their opponents. White has long criticized boxing for allowing stars to avoid dangerous fights.<\/p>\n

If Shakur\u2019s interpretation is accurate, Zuffa Boxing\u2019s biggest signings may enjoy considerably more influence over opponent selection than UFC fighters do. That would mark a notable departure from the system White has promoted for years.<\/p>\n

The exact terms of Shakur\u2019s contract have not been made public, so his post reflects his understanding of the arrangement rather than confirmed company policy. Still, it raises an interesting question about whether Zuffa Boxing\u2019s top stars will have veto power over proposed opponents.<\/p>\n

If Shakur really does have the ability to approve or reject opponents, he\u2019s in an enviable position.<\/p>\n

Traditional promoters often can\u2019t give stars complete control over matchmaking unless those fighters are proven pay-per-view attractions. Every fight has to make financial sense. If a network won\u2019t pay the license fee or the projected revenue doesn\u2019t cover the purses, promoters are left weighing whether it\u2019s worth taking a loss.<\/p>\n

Zuffa Boxing appears to operate under a different set of economics. Backed by Saudi investment, the promotion has shown a willingness to spend aggressively to land elite fighters and make high-profile events happen. That gives Shakur the opportunity to pursue the biggest available names without the same financial constraints that often shape matchmaking elsewhere.<\/p>\n

If Shakur can approve his opponents while still receiving top-level purses, it would represent one of the most favorable positions any boxer has enjoyed in years. The question is whether that flexibility extends to dangerous contenders as well, or only to the marquee fights Shakur wants.<\/p>\n

Robert Segal is a boxing journalist at Boxing News 24 with more than a decade of experience covering fight news, previews, and analysis. Known for his straightforward reporting and ringside perspective, he delivers authoritative coverage of champions, contenders, and emerging talent worldwide.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The exchange came after Rayo Valenzuela posted: \u201cWelcome to Zuffa @ShakurStevenson. I\u2019m your tuneup fight.\u201d Shakur\u2019s response may…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":799221,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[571],"tags":[64,63,802,85],"class_list":["post-799220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-boxing","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799220","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=799220"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/799220\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/799221"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=799220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=799220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=799220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}