Teofimo Lopez was thoroughly outclassed by Shakur Stevenson at Madison Square Garden this weekend, surrendering his WBO Super-Lightweight World Title in the process.
Post-fight, Lopez spoke to The Stomping Ground about what he feels went wrong.
“I was too focused on one particular thing [instead of] really enjoying what I could see opening. I was catching him with the body shots a lot, that was effective, but [I needed] more combinations. I did poorly [by] not listening to my team. That’s on me. Take it on the chin. My team did a phenomenal job, they had great guidelines and instructions, I just didn’t listen tonight … I knew about his jab … I was playing too much to his game, that’s all.”
Though the fighter himself believes the guidelines were ‘great,’ his father and trainer, Teofimo Lopez Sr, has come in for sever criticism for poor corner work in between rounds, failing to deliver clear instructions and instead barking things like ‘you’ll hate yourself tomorrow.’
Lopez then opened up on his general feelings after the contest, remaning humble in defeat and refusing to appreciate the genuinely impressive achievements that led him to this moment.
“[Being here] is an accomplishment in itself. Where do we take it now? We’ll see. I think it’s more of healing this cut and getting back to the drawing board. See where we go, if I move up, 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 it’s part of it. It’s just part of the life. I don’t appreciate it. I think that I get butchered and I think God punishes me a lot for it. I’m just a punching bag to that. Maybe one day I’ll get to that, but not yet. It’s all good. I just never got my fair share. Not once, man. But, hey, that’s just my journey. I just gotta keep it moving … We’ll be back in some way, some form … I’m in a good position to be here and take it on the chin like a real champ.”
Fans can expect to wait a while to hear what Lopez does next. As for Stevenson, he called out Conor Benn in a move that would see him move up in weight yet again.