Teofimo Lopez was doubted heading into his showdown against Josh Taylor. The 25-year-old was deemed unstable mentally and far too loose defensively to stand a chance. Ultimately, Lopez (19-1, 13 KOs) pushed past those dubious voices, marched into the ring on June 10th, and had the performance of his life.
Ignore the close scorecards on the night, Lopez essentially dominated. With the WBO and Ring Magazine super lightweight titles in his possession, the boxing world was his oyster.
By and large, Lopez could’ve chosen anyone for his next ring appearance. Nevertheless, when the Brooklyn native was at his peak, he dropped a bombshell. Instead of naming his next opponent, Lopez abruptly retired. Practically no one, however, believed him, no matter how many times he claimed that he was serious.
Roughly one month later, Lopez was pressured by the WBO sanctioning body to make a decision regarding his title. If Lopez continued in his retirement, Arnold Barboza and Jose Ramirez would then be ordered to battle it out for the vacant crown.
Sweat began falling from Lopez’s brow. Unwilling to simply hand his title over, he ended his transient retirement. Lopez then began calling out Devin Haney. Richardson Hitchins, a highly ranked super lightweight contender, has become vexed by Lopez’s actions. If the WBO titlist is interested in hanging up his gloves, Hitchins believes that a showdown against him will do the trick.
“Teofimo doing all that punk ass shit talking about he retiring,” said Hitchins on his social media account. “Come fight me. I’ll straight smoke you, take your strap and send you on retirement for good. Clown.”
Hitchins (16-0, 7 KOs) can hoot and holler all he wants but he still has a ways to go before he’s in position to face Lopez. Currently, the 25-year-old ranks number six in the WBO. Meaning, a showdown against Lopez remains incredibly unlikely in the immediate future.
Still, regardless of his position, Hitchins is hoping that he’ll eventually skip to the front of the line and face Lopez next.
“Let’s make it happen.”