Rising lightweight star Floyd Schofield silenced the doubters with a dominant performance against veteran Tevin Farmer on Saturday, June 28th, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Returning to the ring after a shaky outing against Rene Tellez Giron last November, the 22-year-old shocked the boxing world by dropping Tevin Farmer twice in the opening round. The former super featherweight champion, who went the distance against the Mexican knockout artist William Zepeda twice, was made to look like a rookie. Kid Austin, with his faster combinations, sealed the deal with a vicious four-punch combo to the head, bringing the fight to a brutal end at just 1 minute and 18 seconds of the first round.

It was nothing short of a statement win for Schofield Jr.—a clear message to the division and its top dogs. So, after watching the fight, the WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson sent out a clear message to the 34-year-old from Philadelphia. “Man cmon Tev u gotta know he was gone come out fast,” Shakur Stevenson wrote in a now-deleted tweet, reacting to Floyd Schofield’s explosive win. While the fight was going on, Stevenson, quite on point, urged, “Lil dude gone come out fast and strong tev gotta be a lil patient and get to that body.” If only that message had gotten to Farmer a bit sooner, things might have gone differently.

It’s worth noting that Schofield was originally slated to face Stevenson on February 22nd on the undercard of Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol rematch. However, he withdrew at the last moment, citing illness. The situation escalated when Schofield’s father accused Stevenson’s team of poisoning his son—an explosive claim he later retracted.

As for Tevin Farmer, he entered Saturday’s bout on a three-fight losing streak. Two of those defeats came against interim lightweight champion William Zepeda—who is set to face Stevenson on July 12th—while the other loss came at the hands of rising lightweight contender Raymond Muratalla.

In the meantime, Schofield Jr. has revealed whether there’s a possibility of a future fight with Stevenson after the debacle in the first.

Floyd Schofield reveals depressive phase after Shakur Stevenson fight cancellation

Immediately after his emphatic victory, Floyd Schofield Jr. took the mic during his in-ring interview to reflect on the moment. “I just feel like, with the win, everything is lifted off my shoulders,” Schofield said. When asked about the canceled fight with Shakur Stevenson earlier this year, the 22-year-old steered clear of controversy, instead focusing on his return.

“I wanted to quit boxing. I was depressed. Reading the comments got to me a bit,” he admitted. “It made me feel some way that people would switch up on me for one thing.” Now, with his confidence restored, Schofield is eyeing another shot at Stevenson—if the WBC champion successfully defends his title next month. 

“Kid Austin has been through a lot,” said his promoter, Oscar De La Hoya. “But you just saw the future star at 135. He put everyone on notice.”

That being said, despite a shaky previous outing and a controversial withdrawal from the Shakur Stevenson fight, Floyd Schofield Jr. has reasserted his presence in the lightweight division with authority. Whether the future will pit him against Stevenson remains to be seen—but one thing’s for sure: that matchup would be must-see. Would you want to see it?