It seemed like Abdullah Mason was fighting every other day. The busy schedule he managed to put together kept him in the limelight and on the minds of most fans and contenders.

It was supposed to be more of the same this past November. Mason, currently unranked by The Ring, sauntered through Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia, as Yohan Vasquez waited patiently. The story was seemingly already written. Mason (16-0, 14 KOs) would outclass his man, bloody him, and eventually score a highlight reel-level knockout. Although the latter did occur, the 20-year-old was forced to work for his second-round win.

In the opening three minutes, Mason found himself kissing the canvas on two occasions. While some were surprised, Nahir Albright saw it coming a mile away. Most who tuned in credited Vasquez for having game-changing power. Albright, however, doesn't believe that his power is as devastating as it seems. According to the lightweight contender, it’s fairly easy to have Mason on wobbly legs.

“I feel like it’s more chin than power,” explained Albright to Tha Boxing Voice. “I feel like I've seen him cracked a couple of times. That’s the first time he got dropped but I think I've seen him stumble a couple times.”

Mason’s reputation may have taken a bit of a hit but Albright (16-2, 7 KOs) still considers him a big-time player in the lightweight division. By and large, Mason has it all. From punching power to smooth boxing abilities. There’s seemingly nothing he can’t do. Nevertheless, while he’s good, very good even, Albright isn’t convinced they’re on the same level.

“I’m just better than him but he got it. Everybody sees it, he can really fight. If you put him against world champions right now, he would do his thing but I just feel like I’m different. I wanna prove it.”

At this point, Albright is anxious to keep his name in the mix. When last seen, he gave Keyshawn Davis all he could handle, losing a majority decision in October of 2023. Ultimately, the Texas Commission would overturn those results to a no-contest due to Davis testing positive for marijuana use.

Being both out of sight and out of mind has Albright playing catch-up. Naturally, a string of victories would be exactly what he needs to re-climb the ranks to make a title push. But, from his point of view, he can be fast-tracked to the spotlight if he can simply get his hands on Mason.

“A win like that over him, a world title shot for my next fight because it’s like, what else do I got to prove?”