Teofimo Lopez had his slick Gilded Age political hat on today, saying his fight with Shakur Stevenson is to prove who the #1 fighter is when they meet on January 31st.
Teo’s Gilded Age Spin
“The reason why this fight is happening is because we want it bad. We want to be #1 in boxing,” said Teofimo Lopez to DAZN about why he and Shakur Stevenson are fighting.
The Real Threat List
Lopez hasn’t proven he’s #1 at 140, and Shakur hasn’t proven he’s even the second best at 135. This fight is mainly about money, as the winner isn’t going to be recognized as #1 at light welterweight without fighting these three champions:
- Gary Antuanne Russell
- Subriel Matias
- Richardson Hitchins
Those are just three fighters that the winner of the Lopez vs. Shakur fight would still need to defeat. There’s also Keyshawn Davis, Ernesto Mercado, and the winner of the Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz vs. Lamont Roach fight.
Money Over Legacy
“He’s coming for my crown at the super lightweight division. Honestly, it’s all about the fans,” said Teofimo about his headliner on DAZN PPV against Stevenson being about the fans, and not about the millions that the two will rake in from the buys and the money Turki Alalshikh pays them.
It’s hard not to see this fight as just a money-grab on Shakur and Teofimo’s part. Neither fighter has shown interest in fighting the killers in their respective weight classes. Teofimo won’t even mention Antuanne Russell or Subriel Matias’ names. And Shakur treats Andy Cruz, Abdullah Mason, and Floyd Schofield like they don’t exist at lightweight.
“Honestly, it doesn’t matter until we hang up the gloves. Depending on how we do with our health, we have a long career ahead of us,” said Lopez when asked whicch of them has the better resume.
Shakur’s Thin Resume
The answer to that question is Teofimo. He’s fought much better opposition with his fights against Vasily Lomachenko, Jamaine Ortiz, and Josh Taylor. The best guys Shakur has fought have been Edwin De Los Santos, William Zepeda, and Oscar Valdez. Interestingly, Stevenson looked poor against Zepeda and De Los Santos. That says a lot about how he struggles against pressure fighters with power.
Political Double-Talk
“This is just something for everybody in 2026. We started off with a bang, and we go from there,” said Lopez.
Teofimo sounds like a slick politician with his comments, using double-talk to disguise what this fight is really about.