Via Allan Fox: Teofimo Lopez Sr. still insists that his son Teo did not lose the November 27 game to George Kambosos Jr. 1, 12 KOs).
As for the record, underdog Kambosos (20-0, 10 KOs) won the deciding round of 12 at Teofimo’s home turf at Madison Square Garden in New York.
According to Teofimo Sr, Teo battled with injured arms, elbows and lungs that prevented him from being 100% fit for the fight with Kambosos.
In hindsight, it would have been smart for Teofimo to postpone the fight until he was well as it appears he was physically broken down at the time of the competition.
What made Teofimo so bad after the battle was his decision not to try to avenge the Kambosos loss as he could have fought him in a rematch.
Kambosos offered Teofimo a second fight, even though there was no rematch clause in the contract as it was a mandatory defense. Instead of accepting Kambosos’ offer, Teofimo opted to increase it to 140, making him look scared in the eyes of many boxing fans.
Teofimo Sr. said that Teo didn’t lose to Kambosos
“Let me tell you this. No one in this world can beat my son,” Teofimo Sr. talk to Fighthype when reflecting on Teo’s decisive round 12 defeat at the hands of George Kambosos.
“I tell people, the only way you can beat him because my son has asthma, and the only way someone can hit my son is if he’s not healthy.
“Don’t you think Kambosos is listening to him gasp? Stay strong, buddy. That motivated that guy. That guy is fake, he is fake buddy, buddy.
“My son is wheezing, I am trying to stop the fight,” said Teofimo Sr. about his Teo working out his title defense against Kambosos on November 27 at Madison Square Garden in New York.
“In the third or fourth round, I said, ‘Do you want me to stop the fight?’ He’s wheezing, man. He couldn’t breathe. He’s got a hole in his chest and stuff. That’s the past, I don’t want to talk about it anymore.
“He is 100% good because he knows what happened,” said Teofimo Sr. talks about Teo not being mentally damaged after the Kambosos loss as some boxing fans believe is the case.
“It’s not like we lost that war. It was a decisive battle to split. I really believe they just want to silence me. There is a lot of hate in boxing. I don’t understand what the other two judges are looking at, do you know what I’m saying? But you have to beat the champion to become the champion.
“My son hurt that boy. It was a quick knockdown my son had, and that’s because of the same ***. After the first minute, he [Teofimo] was doing great, and we were working on a great plan, and then, ‘bap,’ he fell.
“He stood up immediately. You have to give him something because he’s a world champion,” said Lopez Sr of Teofimo. “He has four belts.
“You can’t just give those four belts to someone [Kambosos]. You have to earn that. He didn’t overwhelm my son in the sense that he won convincingly. He is the world champion,” said Teofimo Sr.
Teo “big comeback” in 2022
“Now, we are in Top Rank, everything is good and I am happy,” said Lopez Sr. speak. “Bob [Arum] says nothing has changed, everything remains the same. He didn’t lose any of his sponsors.
“We just need to make a big comeback this year and show the world why he’s always been the best and become the undisputed backstop.
“We will bring it back. At 140, he will feel great,” said Lopez Sr of Teofimo, who will move up to lightweight in July.
The 140 lb division will be ours. We will start in June. To be more precise, I think it’ll be the first week of June or something like that.
“We want him to be 100%,” said Lopez Sr. about a 25-year-old young man Teofimo Jr. “He has been fighting trauma since the battle with Loma. He had that injury before the battle with Loma. The wound on his elbow and the wound on his wrist, he got before the battle with Loma.
“We’re not having surgery or anything like that because we’re going to fight Kambosos right away with Triller and six million dollars and all this.
“We went for that, and I think it was a bad decision. I think we should leave the belt right behind Loma and get him healthy.
“That’s in the past, but I’m just telling people, man. He’ll be world champion again at 140 and maybe two more games after that, he will be undisputed at 140,“Lopez Sr. predicts Teofimo will soon be the undisputed two-tournament champion. “It’s something that no one has ever done, back.”
Lopez Sr hopes Teofimo’s strength will reach 140
“He told me that when he was going to fight in June [of last year], we are ready,” said Teofimo Sr. “He told me and he even started crying because he said to me, ‘Dad, we’ve worked really hard, we’re ready.’
“He felt 100% good that night, and then they canceled the fight [with Kambosos], and they keep canceling. Then you keep training, and then they keep canceling. Do you know what I’m saying?
“I will not make excuses. I just wanted to let everyone know that I don’t want to do that anymore. Now is a new era at 140, and everyone will see why he is the best.
“You know what? My son is very good because he can do that punch to 154, 147, and not a lot of people can do that at 135. But for us, it’s easier because we’re up against other players. world champion.
“Since the age of 13, he has been fighting giants. 140, 147, 154-pounders. Since he’s 13, 14, 15, world champion. Yes, yes, yes, like [Yordenis] Ugas, like Shawn Porter, all these great fighters, and he will do great.
“Why? Because of his speed and because he can put a punch, and that’s why I tell people that longevity is better than winning a match and then that no one will remember you because you will keep losing,” said Teofimo Sr. .
