On October 17th, Teofimo Lopez (16-0) scored a major upset when he defeated WBA/WBO/WBC Franchise lightweight champion Vasiliy Lomachenko (14-2) inside of “The Bubble” at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
The final scores were 119-109, 117-111 and 116-112. The fight is the highest rated boxing event to date in 2020.
The 23-year-old Lopez went into the fight with the IBF lightweight title and left the ring with all of the recognized lightweight titles except the WBC lightweight belt.
Lomachenko, who most outlets had rated as a top 3 pound-for-pound fighter, previously held the WBC title but was elevated to their “Franchise Champion” last year and Devin Haney, who held the WBC interim title at the time, was elevated to full champion status by the sanctioning body.
Bob Arum, whose company Top Rank Inc. promotes Lopez, has a handful of potential opponents for Lopez to face in his 2021 ring return but Haney isn’t on his list.
“No, because Haney has to prove himself. It is all bullsh-t. Let him fight somebody that is real then you can match him with Teofimo Lopez. Haney-Teofimo Lopez is not a fight that is going to generate revenue at this point. I don’t know how good he is going to be, how good he is. I am saying he has to prove himself. If Ryan Garcia – again he hasn’t proved himself – but if he beats Campbell then he proves himself,” Arum explained to Sean Zittel of Fighthype.com.
Arum didn’t rule out a future fight between the two rising stars but reiterated that he would like to see Haney beat a more solid opponent than a past his prime 38-year-old Yuriorkis Gamboa. Haney defeated the Cuban former Olympic gold medalist via unanimous decision earlier this month.
“Let’s see how it develops. Lets see how it goes. I am sure the Haney people are resourceful enough that they will get a decent opponent that will prove that Haney belongs. Beating Gamboa at this point proves nothing,” said Arum.
By Ryan Burton (Boxingscene.com)