Teofimo Lopez: Garcia Made The Right Decision To Fight Romero Instead Of Haney
Teofimo Lopez has given his take on Ryan Garcia’s decision to fight Rolando Romero instead of Devin Haney.
Oscar De La Hoya was confident that a fight would get made, with talks set to begin, hoping to get a fight in March. Garcia reached out to Haney after the latter’s win over Regis Prograis to get the ball rolling. After Garcia was spotted with Floyd Mayweather, he decided to face Rolly instead. This increased suggestions that Mayweather’s advice may have influenced Garcia’s decision.
Bill Haney was outraged by Garcia’s manoeuvre as he questioned whether Ryan was a big star since he failed to sell out in his last fight. He also suggested that team Haney was no longer interested in facing Garcia as Lopez may become a future target. But for all the criticism that was coming Garcia’s way, Lopez felt it was a good decision for Garcia’s career.
Lopez On Garcia
“That’s the Mayweather effect. It’s a smart move. He needs to carry a belt because belts do matter in terms of the percentage we get,” Lopez said
“I think Floyd [Mayweather] knows what he’s doing in navigating all of us at the same time, because you know that Floyd likes to be in the face of everything. That’s nothing disrespectful. That’s just the honest truth,” Lopez added
From a commercial point of view, Garcia will earn a lot more if he faces Haney with a world title. It would set up the narrative for a big unification fight, meaning it can sell more PPVs. In the meantime, a fight with Romero will sell due to their history of bad blood. Romero has claimed he has been calling out Garcia since 2017.
The fight will also help Garcia sell more PPVs and follow up on his success with Gervonta Davis. Despite losing the bout after being stopped in round seven, the fight sold more than 1.2 million PPVs. If he manages to get anywhere near that figure for a Romero fight, it again plays into his favor in securing a bigger purse with Haney. He will also come with a world title to dismiss any suggestions that he is not at an elite level. Lopez also felt the fight was critical for Romero since it would be life-changing money.
Garcia’s Aims
“Ryan Garcia needs to take care of his career much better because you can’t do it if the guy that you’re facing is going to do the money belt, then they do the 65-35 cut. This guy [Ryan] has got the PPV buys, and Devin Haney don’t. Just going on the ways of everything, the guy has his career.
“He [Ryan] wants to do it that way. Go and get a unification bout and go fight this guy [Rolly], and then do the unification with Devin Haney later on. I say, congratulations to Rolando Romero. He’s going to change his family’s life with this money and with this fight. So, good for both of those guys. I think it’s a great match-up,” Lopez stated
‘Find all the latest boxing news and MMA breaking updates on boxingnews.com’
