Good news for Teofimo Lopez fans and for fans of the currently crammed with talent lightweight division. Lopez, the main man at 135 since his brilliant October win over Vasyl Lomachenko, spoke with TMZ Sports, and the unified lightweight champ said he will have three fights this year. This is great news, but best of all, Lopez says he will stay at 135 pounds.
Not too long after causing the upset against Lomachenko, Lopez said he had been struggling long enough to make the 135-pound limit and that he was set to move up to 140. But now, Lopez is calling for big lightweight fights with the other hot young stars of the division, in Ryan Garcia, Tank Davis, and Devin Haney. Lopez, 16-0(12) says he will also face his IBF mandatory challenger, the unbeaten George Kambosos Jr.
“I know y’all scared and shit, but let’s just make the fight happen for the fans. Let’s just do that. Don’t overprice yourselves. If y’all believe y’all the best and y’all think that y’all can take this, then let’s make the fight happen! Man, don’t be pussy about it,” Lopez said in serving notice to his current 135-pound rivals. Our goal is to shoot for three fights this year whether it’s my mandatory, [Ryan] Garcia, [Devin] Haney, Tank Davis, those guys at 135, that’s where our goal is.”
As good/great as 23-year-old Lopez is, it would have been a shame if he had moved up to 140 pounds without engaging in at least two of the potentially thrilling 135-pound match-ups that are there to be made. There are some great fights for Lopez up at 140, but it would be great to see him clean up the lightweight division, or try to do so, before leaving 135 behind. Whether we get to see Lopez against Davis, or Lopez against Garcia, or Lopez against Haney, we will be excited to see who comes out on top.
It might be too much to ask to see Lopez fight all three of his rivals, but who knows, we might get lucky. Fans of all four major talents feel their favorite is the best of the “Fab Four,” and it’s up to Lopez to stamp his authority on the weight class and prove beyond any doubt that he is the best. Now, can he do it? Lopez vs. Davis is an especially mouth-watering match-up. As good/great as Lopez might be, Tank is some terrific fighter himself.
The best, most talent-rich division in the sport right now, the current lightweight division seems set to keep us all hugely entertained here in 2021.