Teofimo Lopez was badly outclassed by Shakur Stevenson at Madison Square Garden this weekend, relinquishing his WBO world welterweight title.
After the fight, Lopez spoke to The playing field about what he thinks went wrong.
“I was too focused on one thing in particular [instead of] really enjoying what I could see opening up. I often caught him with body shots, it was effective, but [I needed] more combinations. I did wrong [by] I don’t listen to my team. It’s for me. Take it on the chin. My team did a phenomenal job, they had great direction and instructions, I just didn’t listen tonight…I knew his jab…I was playing his game too much, that’s all.
Although the fighter himself believes the instructions were “excellent”, his father and trainer, Teofimo Lopez Sr, was harshly criticized for his poor work in turns between rounds, failing to give clear instructions and instead barking things like “you will hate yourself tomorrow”.
Lopez then opened up about his overall feelings after the competition, remaining humble in the face of defeat and refusing to appreciate the truly impressive accomplishments that led him to this moment.
“[Being here] is an accomplishment in itself. Where are we going to take him now? We’ll see. I think it’s more about healing that cut and going back to the drawing board. See where we go, if I make progress, what I do next.
“No not at all [I don’t appreciate what I’ve done in my career]. I hate myself for it, but that’s part of it. It’s just part of life. I don’t appreciate it. I think I’m getting slaughtered and I think God is punishing me a lot for this. I’m just a punching bag for that. Maybe one day I’ll get there, but not yet. Everything is fine. I just never got my fair share. Not once, man. But hey, it’s just my trip. I just have to keep moving forward… We’ll come back one way or another… I’m in a good position to be here and take it on the chin like a true champion.
Fans can expect to wait a bit to find out what Lopez does next. As for Stevenson, he called out Conor Benn in a move that would allow him to gain even more weight.
