Floyd Schofield captured the vacant WBA lightweight title on Saturday night and immediately called for a massive unification fight. But his choice drew a challenge from Jose Valenzuela.
Valenzuela is lobbying the WBA to make him the first challenger for the new lightweight champion. He wants the organization to enforce its rules for vacant titles, which would block those multi-belt plans.
Floyd Schofield’s Unification Dreams Clash With WBA Rules and Jose Valenzuela’s Claim
Schofield improved his record to 20-0 with 13 KOs by defeating Lucas Bahdi via unanimous decision in Chicago. The judges scored the 12-round bout 116-110, 115-111, and 119-108 after “Kid Austin” dropped Bahdi in the third round and survived an 11th-round knockdown. Both received the title shot after the WBA labeled former champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis a “champion in recess” during his ongoing legal battles.
Under WBA Rule C.12, a boxer who wins a vacant title cannot choose an easy voluntary defense for their first match. Instead, the rules require the new titleholder to face the official mandatory challenger or the leading available contender in the division.
Because the WBA previously named Schofield the mandatory challenger to Davis before the belt was vacated, the next logical spot belongs to the division’s active No. 3 contender, Valenzuela.
The 27-year-old fighter holds a 16-3 record with 10 KOs and secured his spot with a dominant second-round knockout over Edwin De Los Santos on June 28, moving to 2-0 under the Zuffa Boxing banner. Two days after Schofield won, “El Rayo” tagged the WBA on X and wrote, “Let’s make it happen.”
@WBABoxing let’s make it happen ⚡️
— Jose el Rayo Valenzuela (@rayoboxing) October 12, 2026
However, Schofield and his camp are actively pushing in a completely different direction. Speaking to DAZN, promoter Oscar De La Hoya looked past regular defenses to focus on massive showdowns against William Zepeda or Abdullah Mason.
“We have another world champion in ‘Kid Austin,’ so we’re excited,” De La Hoya explained. “We’re excited to unify the world titles with anybody.”
Later, speaking to Fight Hub TV backstage, De La Hoya shifted focus toward Gervonta “Tank” Davis, stating, “If Tank comes back, let’s make Tank Davis, why not?”
Oscar De La Hoya wants Zepeda or Gervonta Davis for Kid Austin next!!!! 🥊💥
“Him and Zepeda would be the big fight to do… If Tank comes back, let’s make Tank Davis why not.”
🎥: https://t.co/EuNTCPDiJI https://t.co/nSgSgin3yt
— Fight Hub TV (@FightHubTV) October 11, 2026
If the WBA strictly enforces its vacant-title rules, it will block Golden Boy Promotions from making those multi-belt fights. However, a No. 3 ranking does not guarantee Valenzuela a title shot right away, but it gives him a strong argument to ask for one.
Business Clash Threatens Jose Valenzuela vs. Floyd Schofield
The biggest obstacle to making this fight is business. Valenzuela fights for Zuffa Boxing on Paramount+, while Schofield works with Golden Boy on DAZN. A WBA order can force both sides to negotiate or head to a purse bid, but it cannot force rival networks to work together.
Boxing fans have seen this before. A massive heavyweight fight between Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder completely fell apart in 2018 because their teams could not solve a similar standoff between DAZN and a rival network. Golden Boy’s push for unification matches shows they also want to bypass Valenzuela.
