Via Sean Jones: Teofimo Lopez is on “the undisputed path to II” following his controversial 10th split decisive win over Sandor Martin last Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in New York.
(Image credit: Sumio Yamada)
#1 WBO Teofimo is aiming the following champions in the light welterweight to become undisputed:
- Josh Taylor – WBO
- Regis Prograis – WBC
- Alberto Puello – WBA
With this format, 25-year-old Teofimo, underperforming his replacement Martin (40-3, 13 KOs), it would be a good idea to see him take on 140 lb WBA champion Puello (21 -0, 10 KOs) next instead of biting more than he could chew against WBO champion Josh Taylor (19-0, 13 KOs) or WBC champion Regis Prograis (28-1, 24 KOs) .
Former unified lightweight champion Teofimo (18-1, 13 KOs), who habitually considers himself the undisputed former 135 lb champ, said he’s well on his way to repeating that feat by won all four titles at number 140.
In Teofimo’s last three games since the best win of his career over Vasyl Lomachenko, he doesn’t look the same as before.
Some would argue that with all the hits Lomachenko landed in the second half of that match, it could have done something to Teofimo, resulting in him looking like a shell of himself first. here in subsequent games against George Kambosos Jr, Pedro Campa, and Sandor Martin.
If Teofimo cannot regain the form he had in the pre-match games against Lomachenko, his chances of winning another world title are slim.
There aren’t any weak champions for Teofimo to beat at 140 to become the title holder again, and he seems self-delusional when it comes to his illusory dream of being the undisputed one. .
The Road to Undisputed ll 🏆 #Next person
– Teofimo López (@TeofimoLopez) December 14, 2022
Bellew believes Teofimo deserves to win
“Teofimo won it by a split decision. I think Teofimo has won it,” said Ade Oladipo above boxing DAZN about Teofimo Lopez’s split-half win over Sandor Martin last Saturday night on ESPN+ at Madison Square Garden in New York.
“The cameras caught him as he was asking a member of his team if he still had it. He [Teofimo] say, ‘Do I still have it?’”
Tony Bellew talks about Teofimo asking his team if he still has it. “Every fighter has the same emotions. All warriors have the same feelings. They’re just not as honest as he is.
There was ‘constructive criticism’ when commenting on a major broadcast, and then ‘BLASPHEMY’.
– Teofimo López (@TeofimoLopez) December 13, 2022
“Honestly, it was refreshing to watch. He’s a world-class fighter, and he hasn’t performed at the level he expected of himself. All of that only. He didn’t perform at the level he expected.
“Sandor Martin, what happened to him was that he had a nasty win over Mikey Garcia. That puts him in a place where he was an unknown before the Mikey Garcia match, and Mikey Garcia should never have reached that weight. [140 lbs], by the way. I’ll just say it the way I see it.
“When Sandor Martin beat Mikey Garcia, he was at the level where people knew who he was, who he was. Sandor Martin doesn’t shock anyone anymore because everyone knows who Sandor Martin is. Everyone knows his style.
Teofimo joined that fight knowing who Sandor Martin was and studying his style. It was just a bad clash of styles for him. That style doesn’t suit him and he doesn’t like it.
“Perhaps he was frustrated that he went into that fight thinking, ‘I’m going to get you out of here and completely obliterate you.’ When that doesn’t go according to plan, he gets extremely frustrated with himself.
“Just because a boxer performed better than people expected doesn’t mean he won,” Bellew said, noting that he believes Sandor deserved to lose against Teofimo.
“Just let that sink into everything listening and observing. Just because Sandor Martin did better than we expected doesn’t mean he beat Teofimo Lopez.
“I have seen this happen to boxers in so many fights over the years. When a boxer comes in and he’s an overwhelming underdog, just because he stays 12+ rounds and performs well doesn’t mean he wins. Stop it.
“I know people say that Carlos Baldomir beat Floyd Mayweather. I remember people saying that Jose Luis Castillo beat Floyd Mayweather.
“No, he didn’t. I’m sorry; he just didn’t beat him. He was outboxed. You have to accept that sometimes he just isn’t. Just because he did better doesn’t mean he won.
“I understand what Teofimo Lopez is saying. He’s disappointed in himself, and he’s disappointed in his performance. Believe me, son; You are a world class fighter. You’re one of the best boxers I’ve seen in my life at Vasyl Lomachenko,” Bellew said.
“Did that victory come too soon?” Oladipo said of Teofimo’s win over Lomachenko in 2020. “Every time I look at Teo, it almost feels like it came too soon and he couldn’t handle it or he couldn’t handle the previous loss. [George] Kambosos because clearly something is wrong.”
“It was a bit of both,” Bellew said of Teofimo’s win over Lomachenko coming so early in his career and the subsequent loss to Kambosos that took a toll on his morale, taking a toll on his career. he was derailed.
“When you beat the odds like he did against Vasyl Lomachenko, I say it again, it’s a different fight. If Vasyl Lomachenko hadn’t started so slowly, he would have won that match, but he didn’t.
“The level of expectations for Teofimo Lopez after that game was huge. No matter what he did after that win, Vasyl Lomachenko couldn’t please anyone. No matter what he does, you can’t win.
“The defeat against Kambosos was devastating. So he feels the highest of the highs and he feels the lowest of the lows. He doesn’t have any balance at the moment. There’s no middle ground for him to maintain that, and that’s the problem with today’s fighters.
“You always need to be in the middle of the platform. You are never as great as you think when you win right up there and you are never as poor as you think when you lose. So try to maintain that middle ground,” says Bellew.
“Yes, that’s the last elimination for the WBC title that Regis Prograis has right now,” Oladipo said of Teofimo’s win over Sandor. “I wonder if they are going to try and do one more thing before Teofimo takes on Regis Prograis?”
