Former newbie star Raimer Walker isn’t giving Floyd ‘Child Austin’ Schofield any probability of beating WBC light-weight champion Shakur Stevenson on February twenty second of their struggle in Riyadh.
Walker sparred with Stevenson (22-0, 10 KOs) and located it inconceivable to land something on him, which made him need to enhance his personal protection. He says the one punches he landed have been within the uncommon situations the place Shakur allowed him.
No Likelihood
Schofield (18-0, 12 KOs) and his dad, Floyd Sr., talked their method into the title shot in opposition to Shakur. ‘Child Austin’ didn’t earn the shot the conventional method by beating anybody of observe throughout his four-year professional profession.
Though the WBC doesn’t rank him within the high 15, the World Boxing Affiliation has him ranked #2. He earned that rating by beating middle-of-the-road opposition reasonably than contenders.
Schofield’s promoter, 1992 Olympic gold medalist Oscar De La Hoya, didn’t need him to take this struggle, feeling he was not skilled sufficient to struggle Stevenson. De La Hoya labeled Child Austin as a “novice,” and he wished him to develop extra earlier than preventing for a world title.
It’s believed by some that Schofield is speeding into this struggle for the cash, eager to get the good payday earlier than he will get uncovered by one of many contenders. It wasn’t an excellent signal that second-tier fighter Rene Tellez Giron dropped him in his final struggle on November 2nd.
Can’t wait to begin camp I miss sparring lol
— Shakur Stevenson (@ShakurStevenson) December 13, 2024
“He doesn’t have an opportunity. He received’t stand an opportunity,” stated Raimer Walker to Fighthype about Floyd Schofield not having any shot at defeating WBC light-weight champion Shakur Stevenson on February twenty second in Riyadh.
“He talks an excellent one, however there’s a distinction between speaking and being in there with him [Stevenson]. I truly sparred Shakur. He’s not going to have the ability to hit Shakur,” Walker stated about ‘Child Austin’ Schofield. “Truthfully, I don’t suppose anyone can hit Shakur.
“Sure, it’s onerous [to land a jab on Shakur]. You bought to take what he offer you. No matter he provides you, that’s what you’re going to land. If he don’t give it to you, you’re not going to land it. He’s essentially the most defensive fighter I’ve ever been in with.”
It’s not honest to the followers that Shakur is defending in opposition to Schofield reasonably than going through one in every of these gifted contenders:
Andy Cruz
Edwin De Los Santos: *Rematch for Shakur to indicate that his poor efficiency from November 2023 was actually because of a hand damage and never as a result of he was afraid of the punching energy of De Los Santos.
Raymond Muratalla
Keyshawn Davis
Abdullah Mason
“I discovered from that. It made me work on my protection much more,” stated Walker about his sparring with Shakur. “As soon as I seen I couldn’t hit him as a lot as I hit different individuals, I needed to get my protection like that. I don’t know what it’s. He’s totally different. He works on hit and never get hit so much. So, I’ve been engaged on that so much too. I may see myself like that.
“Not early in my profession, however later as I become old,” stated Walker when requested if he may see himself growing right into a defensive fighter like Shakur, who doesn’t get hit.
Walker didn’t say whether or not Stevenson was on his bike all the time, operating across the ring throughout their sparring classes. We’ve seen that from Shakur in his fights with De Los Santos, Artem Harutyunyan, and Jeremiah Nakathalia. The one struggle within the final three years by which Shakur appeared good was in opposition to Shuichiro Yoshino, and that fighter didn’t look world-class.
