Floyd Schofield Jr. barely had time to ice his hands after taking the WBA lightweight belt from Lucas Bahdi, and already the whole division is at his door. Now Brian Norman Sr. — father and trainer of a world champion himself — has dropped his bombshell on what comes next for Kid Austin.
The two names on Norman Sr.’s board: Abdullah Mason and William Zepeda.
This is the position every young champion dreams about. Schofield took the belt, took Bahdi’s best shots — including getting hurt and showing real championship grit to close the show — and now he holds the cards. Mason wants him. Zepeda wants him. The line of challengers is forming, and Norman Sr. sees the chessboard clearly.
Here’s what we like about where Schofield sits. He didn’t win the belt by hiding. He went into a firefight with Bahdi, got buzzed, and still stood on business to get the decision. That’s a champion’s education in one night. And now, instead of a soft first defense, the names being floated are Mason — the same Mason whose camp Sr. says turned down a million dollars to fight Schofield before he had the belt — and Zepeda, fresh off beating Lamont Roach and one of the most avoided bodies in the division.
Mason is the fascinating one. He talked his way into this conversation, and now the belt is right there for the taking. But remember the receipts: before Schofield was champion, the Mason camp reportedly passed on the fight. Now that the belt — and the money that comes with it — is on Schofield’s waist, suddenly everyone’s interested. Funny how that works.
Zepeda, meanwhile, is pure danger. High-volume pressure, relentless engine, the kind of fighter who makes champions look ordinary. Schofield Sr. has made it clear the family isn’t ducking anybody — and after the Bahdi fight, nobody can question the young man’s heart.
Norman Sr. knows what a real championship reign looks like. He built one at home. His take carries weight because he’s been in the exact seat Schofield Sr. is sitting in now. And the message underneath the bombshell is simple: the champion doesn’t chase — the champion chooses. That’s the privilege Schofield earned on October 11th.
Video credit: Mill City Boxing.
