Teofimo Lopez beat the previously-undefeated Josh Taylor over twelve rounds to become a two-weight world champion in New York on June 10.
Lopez entered the fight as the underdog off the back of two below-par performances at super-lightweight following his sole career defeat to George Kambosos Jr a division down.
Taylor, who brought the WBO belt to the table having previously vacated the other three 140lbs titles, was over a year out of the ring since a controversial victory against Jack Catterall, but had the bookmakers’ backing due to be the naturally bigger man who seemed to handle the pressure of fight week in a better manner.
It was Lopez who performed under the lights, though, giving fans a show reminiscent of his victory over Vasiliy Lomachenko. He outclassed his Scottish opponent with an oftentimes flawless style, taking the belt and becoming a two-division champ at just 25-years-old.
In footage courtesy of Top Rank, the pairs’ exchange after the bell has now been revealed. Despite all of the trash talk – some of it way too far on Lopez’ part – the fighters were good-natured and respectful.
The Brooklyn native told Taylor that he should’ve moved up in weight – something he has been teasing for some time now.
Taylor has since confirmed his move up to welterweight, despite seeming to handle the cut better for this fight. He’ll join the likes of Vergil Ortiz Jr, Eimantas Stanionis and Jaron Ennis to vie for the titles of Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jr.
As for Lopez, his future is much harder to decipher. He quickly announced his retirement from the sport after the victory, and spoke to the WBO President about vacating his new title.
Days later, he told Boxing Social that he would return for a longterm, lucrative deal with a broadcaster. Should he do so, there are plenty of big fights waiting.