Shakur Stevenson says he’s “concerned” that challenger Floyd Schofield may pull out of their Feb. 22 fight after he failed to show up to their press conference to discuss their undercard clash on the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol 2.
Schofield’s absence
Schofield (18-0, 12 KOs) just wasn’t there today, but his promoter, Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions, was, and he spoke highly of him.
WBC lightweight champion Stevenson will defend against his hand-picked opponent Schofield should he appear next month. It could be one of the more interesting fights on the card as it will allow fans to see if Stevenson has turned over a new leaf. He said he will stay in the pocket for this fight and “steal the show” from the other fighters on the card.
“He definitely made a mistake. He is a good, young fighter, a hungry fighter. I still hope he takes the fight,” Shakur Stevenson said today press conferencereacting to Floyd Schofield’s no-show. “I’m kind of worried that he’s not here. I was a bit excited to see him.
“Don’t get excited and withdraw from the fight. I know it’s hard. I know you’re busy, but just show up. It looked like I was going in, putting my offensive bag on and letting my hands go, beating guys. That’s what I’m coming to do on February 22.
“You have a young, hungry child. It’s not some old, washed-up guy who wants to win, but they don’t have the body or the age to do it. So this is a hungry lion. He speaks. His dad is talking. They sound very confident online. I wish they were here in person to see how confident they really are,” Shakur said of Floyd Jr. and his father.
It doesn’t matter that Schofield didn’t show up during the press conference because he will be there on February 22, and there will be a lot of pressure on the champion. This is a fight that could go badly for Shakur if his surgically repaired right hand doesn’t hold up in the heat of the fight. Trying to fight with only one hand working against Floyd Jr. it will be a nightmare.
“Maybe, yes, because when you talk so much, you have to live up to the hype you talk about,” Shakur said. “So, yeah, I think the energy will be different, but we’ll see. Zepeda was my first choice. I would love to fight Zepeda. Now we’re here with Schofield. It is the next best option available.”
Stevenson should be happy that the fight against William Zepeda isn’t happening because that would be a fight that would probably end badly for him. There’s no way he could match Zepeda’s high 100+ punches per round outbox, and he wouldn’t be able to counter the power of his punches. He would be forced to flee, and that would be a bad look.
“Stealing The Show”
“What should I do to beat him? Just be yourself. Go there and perform. My goal is to steal the show. That’s why I’m here. I think Cordina is one hell of a fighter. I have nothing bad to say. I always thought he and I were good fighters. I like the fights the fans want to see,” Shakur said.
There is no way Shakur will “steal the show” on February 22nd unless all the other fights bomb badly and he changes his safety-first fighting style. Shakur is too much of a coward to stop using his hit-and-don’t-get-hit fighting style. So that sort of rules out Stevenson’s ‘stealing the show’.
“The fans didn’t want to see me against Cordina. Everyone saw the fight and thought it was a terrible fight. When they saw me fight Schofield, they got more excited about the fight because he’s a young, undefeated lion and naturally weighs 135 pounds.
“A lot of people think Cordina is 130 pounds. I actually think he’s 135 pounds and I think he’ll feel better with the weight. Just because it’s not happening now doesn’t mean it won’t happen,” Shakur said.
That a fight with Shakura and Cordina would happen in the future. it should work a lot. Stevenson’s career would have to fall apart. This is the only way that this fight could happen, because 33-year-old Cordina is not young, and he does not remain active in his career.
The last time he fought was on May 8, 2024, he was knocked out in the eighth round by Anthony Cacace. He has no fights scheduled and hopes to reach the top spot at 135 to make a fight against Stevenson happen.
