Walking Away From the Ring, Not The Fight: The 25-year-old pound-for-pound great Teofimo Lopez opened up about why he’s considering stepping away from some of the major fights. Speaking to Fight Hype, Lopez said: “I am walking away,” he declared emphatically. “I can beat those guys, but it’s not about the competitiveness. I’m fighting the referee, I’m fighting the judges, I’m fighting their cornerman, and I’m fighting the commentators. It’s too many fights for me.”
His distaste for the current state of boxing seems to stem from the intense pressure and manipulations behind the scenes, which, according to him, even extend to contract negotiations. “If I sign another contract… they’ll find a way to postpone the fight and keep postponing, wasting my time,” Lopez stated.
The Verbal Knockout “Punch” for Gervonta Davis
As if his critique of the boxing world wasn’t enough, Lopez did not pull his punches when it came to his views on Gervonta Davis. A barrage of expletives and insults was aimed directly at Davis, the two-division world champion.
“Gervonta, you are a [__]. I don’t care what anybody says, you can be all that rah-rah thug life… get out of here.”
Lopez didn’t stop there. He went on with a crude insult aimed at Davis’s physical appearance. Despite his unrelenting criticism of certain individuals, Lopez made sure to give credit where credit is due. He showed appreciation for Calvin Ford, a highly regarded figure in boxing, stating, “Calvin Ford, I respect you, love you very much, my brother. It’s just me and your fighter that I will explain it to.”
When asked about who he considered the toughest fight among Shakur, Devin, and Gervonta, Lopez gave a strategic breakdown. He pointed out that Shakur would pose a significant technical challenge, while Gervonta would test him with power and speed.
“Technically wise, Shakur; power and some speed would be Tank,” he shared. In a rather blunt assessment, he placed Devin Haney at the bottom, stating, “Devin Haney is the last of the bunch.”
Ryan Garcia: Desperate or Ambitious?
While the interview featured a number of stinging comments from Teofimo Lopez, his words about Ryan Garcia were particularly brutal. Lopez appeared dismissive of Garcia’s attempt to set up a match, painting him as eager for a quick buck rather than a test of skill.
“Ryan DM’d me and everything, boy desperate for some payday,” Lopez revealed. He then expressed disdain for Garcia’s follow-up to their potential fight, “He DM’d me it’s a fight after the Josh Taylor fight. So I read it, unread it, deleted it.” Lopez’s scathing dismissal of Garcia’s attempt to set up a match highlights his disdain for what he perceives as opportunistic behavior.
To compound the criticism, Lopez cast doubt on Garcia’s influence over boxing’s audience. He queried, “A lot of them see it as like these kids are… you know all the people that follow him, you know, at one point… that they did on pay-per-view buys was mainly from Ryan’s side not really from Tank and that’s all from the YouTubers and the young kids.” Lopez’s words pose a crucial question: Is the growing influence of social media personalities altering the landscape of professional boxing? And is it for the better?
