Teofimo Lopez aims to become a three-division champion against Rolly Romero on August 22, but after a one-sided loss to Shakur Stevenson, questions linger about whether he can truly rebound.
It is the big fight on Saturday night in Lopez vs Romero but those Shakur Stevenson demons are still fresh in the mind of Lopez.
He needs to get rid of them and the only method is to defeat Rolly on Saturday.
Some things to consider on this ahead of the fight;
- Faces Rolly Romero for the welterweight title on August 22 in Las Vegas
- Aims to become a three-division world champion with a win
- Comes off a lopsided unanimous decision loss to Shakur Stevenson in January
- Landed just 72 punches to Stevenson’s 165 in that fight
- Admitted he “hates himself” for the performance and ignored his corner’s game plan
- Father and trainer Teofimo Sr. also blamed him for not following instructions
- Critics say Lopez had no backup plan and brought nothing new to the ring
- Keith Thurman believes he has what it takes to bounce back
- Terence Crawford’s trainer predicted Lopez will “smash” Romero
- A true career crossroads—Lopez needs redemption, Romero needs validation
Some take a different standpoint though.
Lopez looks angry a lot in his interviews at the moment ahead of the fight.
He looks very rattled.
Rolly Romero appears to be in a much better place mentally.
Rolly is the champion also and is the natural fighter at 147 pounds, maybe hits harder than Lopez.
Lopez displayed a lot of decline vs Shakur Stevenson and against Arnold Barboza last year before that.
He could come straight onto some big shots if he is not focused.
Great clash of styles on Saturday night.
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