Who Pays for Shakur? The Purse Bid Is Boxing's Last Free Market

In a sport where every big fight is decided in a back room, the purse bid is the one place where the price gets set in public. Shakur Stevenson may be about to find out what the open market really thinks he's worth.

The WBO has ordered Stevenson to negotiate a mandatory defense of his junior welterweight title against No. 1 challenger Raymond Muratalla. If talks fail, the fight goes to a purse bid. (Sam had his own take: The WBO Just Put Shakur Stevenson on the Clock.)

In his Substack column "So Who Pays for Stevenson-Muratalla?", Steve Kim reports that WBO president Gustavo Olivieri told him the split would be a "75-25 split in favor of Stevenson."

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Stevenson is a free agent after parting ways with Zuffa Boxing, so whoever signs him also takes on the obligation to bid. Kim cites reports by Sean Zittel that Stevenson turned down upwards of $7 million to fight Jose 'Rayo' Valenzuela; his manager James Prince has denied some of that.

Kim does the math: a bid of about $10 million would put Stevenson around the $7.5 million he reportedly turned down. Muratalla, as Kim puts it, is closer to a Rayo than a Haney or Pacquiao.

The Kimster's read

That's what makes this fun. No network spin, no "sources say" figures, just sealed envelopes and a winning number everyone can see. And Kim adds a warning worth repeating: a purse bid alone doesn't guarantee the fight happens.

How much do you think the winning bid will be? Play Guess the Purse on Boxbid.