Teofimo Lopez Fires Back After Sergio Mora Targets Edgar Berlanga

Mora questioned Berlanga’s “The Chosen One” nickname following his stoppage of Steven Butler before Lopez jumped into the debate on social media.

Teofimo Lopez defended Edgar Berlanga after Sergio Mora questioned whether the super middleweight should still use “The Chosen One” nickname following his win over Steven Butler. Lopez answered Mora’s criticism with a sarcastic social media response that reignited debate over Berlanga’s standing.

The former WBC junior middleweight champion wrote on X, “At 29, if you already been stopped and haven’t won a world title, then maybe ‘The Chosen One’ isn’t the best boxing moniker for you.”

Teofimo responded with a sarcastic post.

“Man! Respectfully, I need to get a full run of Sergio Mora’s accomplishments and resume. I know he was the first winner of ‘The Contender’ series, Executive Produced by @TheSlyStallone.”

The response carried extra intrigue because Teofimo and Berlanga have exchanged insults in the past, particularly after Berlanga’s loss to Canelo Alvarez in 2024. Their latest interaction put those disagreements aside long enough for Lopez to challenge Mora instead.

Mora’s criticism was rooted in what unfolded against Butler. Berlanga struggled early, absorbed heavy punches throughout the fight, and was still getting caught clean before finally ending matters in the seventh round. The performance shared similarities with his loss to Hamzah Sheeraz last July, although Butler never strung his punches together with the same consistency. Berlanga’s power ultimately proved decisive, but the victory did little to quiet questions about how he would fare against the division’s leading contenders.

From Zuffa Boxing’s standpoint, matching will remain important. Berlanga has the power to produce entertaining finishes, but this performance suggested there is still considerable work to do before he is ready for the best fighters at 168 pounds. Mora’s comments reflected that viewpoint, even if Lopez believed the criticism deserved a response.

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