Teofimo Lopez blames his opponents Sandor Martin and Jamaine Ortiz for his poor efficiency in opposition to them. Teo feels that Sandor and Ortiz weren’t making an attempt to have interaction with him, making it more durable. Lopez nonetheless says he beat each, regardless of followers feeling he was given present selections.
(Photograph credit score: Prime Rank)
Lopez’s Declining Efficiency
The issue is that Teofimo, 26, confirmed an incapability to chop off the ring in each of these fights. Sandor simply outboxed Lopez, utilizing minimal motion to elude his makes an attempt to land massive pictures.
Jamaine Ortiz was too quick and received the higher of Teofimo in the course of the exchanges. That combat seemed to be a one-sided win for Ortiz, however the judges gave it to Teofimo by an unpopular 12-round determination. Teo ought to have given Ortiz a rematch to clear up the controversy, however as a substitute, he moved on.
WBO gentle welterweight champion Teofimo (20-1, 13 KOs) shall be defending this Saturday, June twenty ninth, in opposition to Steve Claggett (38-7-2, 26 KOs) on the James L. Knight Heart in Miami, Florida.
Prime Rank has pulled Teofimo again from preventing good opposition after the way in which he fought in opposition to Ortiz. Followers on social media imagine Prime Rank doesn’t belief Teofimo’s capacity to combat good fighters, so that they’re utilizing Claggett as his opponent to assist Teo maintain his WBO belt.
Teofimo’s Delusional Statements
“Sandor Martin, I felt the man didn’t actually wish to compete with me. The identical factor with Jamaine Ortiz,” mentioned Teofimo Lopez to Sean Zittel, speaking about two fighters that outboxed him however he was nonetheless given controversial wins in opposition to. “Ortiz confirmed that he didn’t wish to interact with me,” mentioned Teofimo.
Both Teofimo is deliberately disingenuous about Ortiz and Sandor not having the ability to compete with him, or he’s deluded. They not solely competed with Teofimo however made a monkey out of him in these fights, education him badly and leaving him questioning himself afterward in his combat with Sandor. “Do I nonetheless received it?” mentioned Teofimo after his win over Sandor in 2022.
It’s scary how out of contact Teofimo is in actuality, however which may clarify why his performances have steadily deteriorated since his combat in opposition to Vasily Lomachenko. That combat modified him.
“I perceive how individuals say that I ought to work round that. So these are simply issues I’m going by. I’m not going through guys which might be chumps,” mentioned Teofimo. “These guys are well-experienced, they usually’re troublesome type fighters. We go aiming in the direction of these sorts of fights for studying, and truly getting higher.”
I don’t suppose Sandor Martin or Jamaine Ortiz had been chosen for Teofimo for studying functions. It was extra of a case of Prime Rank selecting them as a result of Teo had misplaced to George Kambosos Jr, and he wanted to be rebuilt. Ortiz probably was chosen due to how dangerous Teofimo regarded in his combat with Sandor, wanting and sounding like a basket case.
“I’m nonetheless creating regardless of every thing I’ve achieved. Each time a fighter does come to me [brings pressure] or that aggression. What occurs? The combat modified,” mentioned Teofimo.
A Fall from Grace
Teo’s combat in opposition to Jamaine Ortiz confirmed that he’s not bettering however is getting worse. He’s clearly not the fighter who destroyed Richard Commey and Diego Magdaleno 5 years in the past. Again then, Teofimo was explosive and lightning-quick. He doesn’t combat like that anymore.
Furthermore, Teofimo was witty and charismatic in interviews, gaining a variety of followers. After Lomachenko, he modified and began babbling, which didn’t make a variety of sense in his interviews. If there was a manner of taking the 2019 model of Teofimo and bringing him to 2024, he would dominate and be heading in the direction of stardom. He can be a PPV attraction and never caught preventing on common non-PPV ESPN.
“Everybody can say about chopping off the ring, however till you’re in there with me, it’s a special story. You bought to be in my reveals. It’s not like I misplaced these fights. I’ve gained each combat. It’s extra about what did I do proper and what did I do mistaken, and work within the health club. That’s life. They’re [fans] simply going to be exhausting on me due to the place I’m at,” mentioned Teofimo.
Teofimo hasn’t gained each combat. He’s misplaced one, and he ought to have two further defeats or three if you happen to rely the Masayoshi Nakatani combat as a loss as properly.
