Teofimo Lopez Dismisses Shakur Stevenson’s Call Out – ‘Stay In Your Lane’
Teofimo Lopez has dismissed Shakur Stevenson’s call out for a fight.
Stevenson called out Lopez for a potential bout at 140. Both are with Top Rank, although Stevenson is expected to become a free agent after his next fight. Shakur will box Artem Harutyunyan on July 6 in his final fight with Top Rank. A fight with Shakur and Lopez could have made sense. Both are struggling to secure the big fights. Stevenson has been linked with Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia before the Artem fight was announced.
Lopez Reacts
Meanwhile, Lopez was also linked with Garcia, Devin Haney, and Subriel Matias. But Lopez will box Steve Claggett on June 29. A fight could take place at 140 pounds, requiring Shakur to move up. Stevenson is a three-weight world champion. There are two big fights possible for him at 135 pounds: the Davis fight and one with Vasiliy Lomachenko. However, the Lopez fight could be done if they cannot be made. But the Takeover dismissed that, telling Shakur to focus on his own weight class.
“I know you are calling us out at 140, but you’re fighting at 135. Stay in your lane. I know that you got to keep yourself relevant, but there’s a type of relevancy you got to do. That means you got to fight; you really got to fight,” Lopez said
Shakur was heavily criticized for not having power when he boxed Edwin De Los Santos. Shakur would defeat him to become the new WBC Lightweight Champion, but his defensive style was criticized. Stevenson was fighting off the back foot with his jab. Meanwhile, De Los Santos struggled to cut the ring off. The ringside fans booed Shakur during and after the fight.
Lopez’s Criticism
While he did say he had a hand injury, Stevenson’s brand was damaged. There is an argument that Shakur does not have the power to command the respect of elite boxers. This would make any potential Davis and Lopez fights a dour spectacle.
Shakur’s record shows that he does not have many knockouts. Despite being 21-0, only 10 wins have come by knockout. Shakur and Lopez are not the biggest ticket sellers, making this an even more difficult fight to sell. That is why the fight will not happen anytime soon.
“Shakur Stevenson, we will never lace up a pair of gloves. I don’t care. Shakur Stevenson is a guy if they want to call him ‘Sugar,’ he’s got a lot of sugar. He’s actually at his finest and at his best at his lightest weight, but the kid is eating a lot in between camps, and now he’s going up to 135.
My father was right about a lot of things with these kids. Haney and them. You got to have pop, and you got to have chin. Shakur, you should go back to 130 or probably try and make it to 126 because that’s where you’re going to become undisputed, and people are really going to talk heavy about you,” Lopez said
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