On social media, Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya confirmed that his fighter, Floyd ‘Kid Austin’ Schofield, will face Shakur Stevenson for the WBC Lightweight title. Shakur responded to De La Hoya’s text, telling him he was coming to pick up his other top-ranked fighter, William Zepeda, after he defeated Schofield.
An 18-foot ring?
Oscar didn’t say anything in his X post about whether he’ll insist on a smaller 18-foot ring to ensure Shakur doesn’t run around all night, playing keep-away to prevent the explosive Schofield hitter from hitting any power shots. If it’s a 24-foot ring, it will be nearly impossible for Schofield to land without being as fast as Shakur.
The good news is that De La Hoya has given undefeated knockout artist Schofield (18-0, 12 KOs) the go-ahead to face Shakur (22-0, 10 KOs) in what is expected to be one of the most entertaining bouts of the season. February 22 in Riyadh.
Zepeda (32-0, 27 KOs) would be a tough fight for Shakur as he cuts the ring well, has a great jab and focuses more on body shots than trying to connect up top. Shakur’s bread and butter is moving his head to avoid a punch, but there’s nothing he can do to avoid a body punch. Zepeda uses a spear thrust to the midsection of his opponents when they try to run.
We saw that in his fights with Giovanni Cabrera, Maxie Hughes and Tevin Farmer. When those guys tried to move, Zepeda forced them to stand still by throwing hard shots to the body with the lead arm, like a power punch.
“Underequipped” for dogfighting
It is almost impossible for fighters to move when they are hit hard to the body. That forces them to stand and fight, which could be a disaster for Shakur because he’s not equipped to stand and dogfight with Zepeda or the 22-year-old Schofield.
You finally speak some sense, first him, then I take down Zepeda next 🦾 sorry in advance my boy you are a legend to me in the boxing ring!! https://t.co/SIKhmijiRe
— Shakur Stevenson (@ShakurStevenson) December 2, 2024