Teofimo Lopez’s next fight is close to being agreed against Steve Claggett for June 29 in Miami.

The WBO Junior Welterweight Champion’s last fight was a controversial victory over Jamaine Ortiz. The boxing community was divided over the result, with some feeling Ortiz had been robbed of a win. The Takeover landed more power shots on his opponent, but Ortiz landed the most punches. That was Lopez’s first defense of his WBO belt, which he acquired after beating Josh Taylor so impressively. 

Before the Ortiz fight, team Lopez targeted the big names. Terence Crawford was mentioned as an opponent. Teo was happy to move up to 147, while Bud responded by telling the boxer to fight in his own weight class. Teofimo Lopez Sr. accused Bud of ducking his son. 

Lopez Wants Big Fights

“I don’t think Crawford wants anything to do with my son. His career is going to be over. That’s how he feels. My son destroying him. He [Crawford] thinks he’s King Kong. Him losing to my son would be a disgrace. He wouldn’t be able to sleep at night. It would be a nightmare. it would be like him coming back from Vietnam.

“He knows my son has got a good chance to give him that L, and that’s all they care about is losing. They don’t want to lose. My son always goes for the top dog. He’s in the game to fight the top dog. Terence wants to go three weight divisions to fight Canelo. My son just wants to go one weight division,” Lopez Sr. said 

Lopez Sr. also wanted to make a unification fight with Devin Haney. Lopez and Haney were close to facing each other at 135 pounds. However, Lopez lost his belts against George Kambosos Jr. Rather than taking a rematch, Lopez decided to move up to 140. Haney would then face Kambosos to become undisputed at 135.

“My son beat him in the amateurs, and we’re going to do the same thing all over again. I heard that Bill Haney is training Jamaine Ortiz. Listen, we’re here to take the biggest fights. Haney has got a belt [WBC 140-lb] that we want, and that fight can be made easily. It’s up to them if they want to take it,” Lopez Sr. said

Lopez’s Next Fight

The poor performance against Ortiz has now damaged his standing. Claggett is not an elite-level fighter. His record stands at 38-7-2. The seven losses on his record show that he has struggled at the highest level. However, he is currently in some good form.

He has nine wins in a row, seven of which include stoppages. Lopez is the biggest name he has faced, giving him nothing to lose. But in Truth, it is a huge climbdown for Lopez. He must put on an impressive performance to keep himself in the conversation for the biggest fights. So far, he is struggling to do that.

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