Vasiliy Lomachenko Opens Up On Teofimo Lopez Loss: “It’s About Being Bribed, There Was Nothing About Honest Judging”

[DrDuke]

The scorecards sucked indeed, but Lomachenko has to blame himself more, as it looked like, he could have won, if showed more will.

[Thomastearns]

Lopez: Lomachenko's Statements Just Show What Kind Of Person He Really Is

Teofimo Lopez laughed when he was jokingly asked why he squandered so much of his purse to bribe the judges before his career-defining fight versus Vasiliy Lomachenko.

All kidding aside, Lopez considers the controversial comments Lomachenko made recently “sad,” not funny. Lopez expected excuses from the former three-division champion once Lopez upset him October 17, but he didn’t think Lomachenko would claim that the judges were bribed to favor Lopez prior to their 12-round, 135-pound title unification fight at MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas.

“I knew that he was probably gonna come up with an excuse of an injury, or something like that,” Lopez told Boxing Scene. early Sunday morning at Alamodome, following Canelo Alvarez’s victory over Callum Smith. “Or that he’s probably too old and he’s gonna retire. There was a lot of commotion going on and I had an idea of what they were gonna throw at me when I beat this guy.

“However, for Lomachenko to come out recently and come out with a statement like that, it definitely shocked me. It surprised me, but at the same time, I mean, what else can I expect from a guy who left without talking about what he did wrong in the post-fight press conference? He didn’t show up for anyone. So, I think these statements just show what kind of person he really is.”

The powerful Lopez out-boxed Lomachenko, who was a 4-1 favorite, to win their fight unanimously on the scorecards. Judges Julie Lederman (119-109), Steve Weisfeld (117-111) and Tim Cheatham (116-112) scored their bout for the 23-year-old Lopez (16-0, 12 KOs), who became the youngest fully unified champion in boxing’s four-belt era.

Lederman’s score wasn’t reflective of the work Lomachenko did during the second half of their bout, but the two-time Olympic gold medalist essentially gave away the first half of the bout by approaching Lopez very cautiously. His strange strategy early in their fight helped lead to the most decisive defeat of Lomachenko’s seven-year pro career.

“I think it just makes the other person look bad,” Lopez said, “when they talk about something that, realistically, everyone else saw different. You know, however, that person feels and however they wanna look at it, you know, that’s just someone that doesn’t wanna accept their defeat.”

The 32-year-old Lomachenko (14-2, 10 KOs) didn’t have a rematch clause in his contract. Lopez doesn’t see any need to fight Lomachenko again.

“There’s no point,” Lopez said. “There really is no point. Listen, he doesn’t wanna fight again. That whole time that we fought – and I don’t need to explain myself because it’s there, it’s written. You know what I mean? But it’s written in stone. The guy don’t wanna fight. He was in survival mode the whole time.

“The best boxer in the whole world, that everybody said was a magician, a god in boxing, and all those things, the best fighter since Muhammad Ali, whatever they wanna say, he didn’t wanna go toe-to-toe with me. He did not even wanna take that chance, so it just goes to show what kind of man he really is.”

Lopez's words mean absolutely nothing unless he's prepared to go again.

It should be quite clear to everyone that he isn't. Hence, it's better for him if he keeps his mouth shut.

Or else everyone will then see what kind of man he really is.

[skanksta]

I'd love to see a rematch - sure we all would.

[Onetimeonly]

I'd love to see a rematch - sure we all would.

Imagine what excuses loma will have after he gets slumped.

[skanksta]

I'd love to see a rematch - sure we all would.

Imagine what excuses loma will have after he gets slumped.

His excuses aren't good, but he obviously underperformed for some reason.
He has a big chance in a rematch.

[Onetimeonly]

I'd love to see a rematch - sure we all would.

Imagine what excuses loma will have after he gets slumped.

His excuses aren't good, but he obviously underperformed for some reason.
He has a big chance in a rematch.

Disagree, if he's more aggressive he's going down.

[skanksta]

Imagine what excuses loma will have after he gets slumped.

His excuses aren't good, but he obviously underperformed for some reason.
He has a big chance in a rematch.

Disagree, if he's more aggressive he's going down.

Maybe, but you wanna see it right ?

[Onetimeonly]

His excuses aren't good, but he obviously underperformed for some reason.
He has a big chance in a rematch.

Disagree, if he's more aggressive he's going down.

Maybe, but you wanna see it right ?

I'd watch, rather see Lopez vs another young gun given the choice.

[Trent]

Imagine what excuses loma will have after he gets slumped.

His excuses aren't good, but he obviously underperformed for some reason.
He has a big chance in a rematch.

Disagree, if he's more aggressive he's going down.

Yeah I somewhat agree with that. Remember lopez only had 15? Fights, therefore it was normal he gassed a little and allowed Loma into the fight at the end. Lopez will adapt a better gass tank with more experience.

On the other hand I could also see Loma edging a rematch on points as he now knows the style of lopez.

Hopefully they have a rematch. Will be interesting.

[Stanny Onis]

A draw would have been the fair result. The fix was definitely in as you can see from that particularly awful scorecard.

Loma started far too late. But when he did let his hands go in rounds 7-11 he was the clear superior better fighter.

[Ruthless-RKO]

A draw would have been the fair result. The fix was definitely in as you can see from that particularly awful scorecard.

Loma started far too late. But when he did let his hands go in rounds 7-11 he was the clear superior better fighter.

A draw was the absolute most you could probably give Loma though. He literally gave rounds away. I was trying to give him the benefit of the doubt being the champion and all that.

[Puncher7]

Lopez: Lomachenko's Statements Just Show What Kind Of Person He Really Is

Teofimo Lopez laughed when he was jokingly asked why he squandered so much of his purse to bribe the judges before his career-defining fight versus Vasiliy Lomachenko.

All kidding aside, Lopez considers the controversial comments Lomachenko made recently “sad,” not funny. Lopez expected excuses from the former three-division champion once Lopez upset him October 17, but he didn’t think Lomachenko would claim that the judges were bribed to favor Lopez prior to their 12-round, 135-pound title unification fight at MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas.

“I knew that he was probably gonna come up with an excuse of an injury, or something like that,” Lopez told Boxing Scene. early Sunday morning at Alamodome, following Canelo Alvarez’s victory over Callum Smith. “Or that he’s probably too old and he’s gonna retire. There was a lot of commotion going on and I had an idea of what they were gonna throw at me when I beat this guy.

“However, for Lomachenko to come out recently and come out with a statement like that, it definitely shocked me. It surprised me, but at the same time, I mean, what else can I expect from a guy who left without talking about what he did wrong in the post-fight press conference? He didn’t show up for anyone. So, I think these statements just show what kind of person he really is.”

The powerful Lopez out-boxed Lomachenko, who was a 4-1 favorite, to win their fight unanimously on the scorecards. Judges Julie Lederman (119-109), Steve Weisfeld (117-111) and Tim Cheatham (116-112) scored their bout for the 23-year-old Lopez (16-0, 12 KOs), who became the youngest fully unified champion in boxing’s four-belt era.

Lederman’s score wasn’t reflective of the work Lomachenko did during the second half of their bout, but the two-time Olympic gold medalist essentially gave away the first half of the bout by approaching Lopez very cautiously. His strange strategy early in their fight helped lead to the most decisive defeat of Lomachenko’s seven-year pro career.

“I think it just makes the other person look bad,” Lopez said, “when they talk about something that, realistically, everyone else saw different. You know, however, that person feels and however they wanna look at it, you know, that’s just someone that doesn’t wanna accept their defeat.”

The 32-year-old Lomachenko (14-2, 10 KOs) didn’t have a rematch clause in his contract. Lopez doesn’t see any need to fight Lomachenko again.

“There’s no point,” Lopez said. “There really is no point. Listen, he doesn’t wanna fight again. That whole time that we fought – and I don’t need to explain myself because it’s there, it’s written. You know what I mean? But it’s written in stone. The guy don’t wanna fight. He was in survival mode the whole time.

“The best boxer in the whole world, that everybody said was a magician, a god in boxing, and all those things, the best fighter since Muhammad Ali, whatever they wanna say, he didn’t wanna go toe-to-toe with me. He did not even wanna take that chance, so it just goes to show what kind of man he really is.”

Lopez's words mean absolutely nothing unless he's prepared to go again.

It should be quite clear to everyone that he isn't. Hence, it's better for him if he keeps his mouth shut.

Or else everyone will then see what kind of man he really is.

Why should he? The fight wasn't very close(or entertaining) and Lomachenko didn't want a rematch clause. Why not go for a big fight with Haney or Garcia?

[brilo33]

i gave the first think 6 to teo was very uninpressed with loma, teo came to fight you never , i like loma but give teo his dues. to be honest teo could ko him next fight as his fear gone , he is champ and will come for you

[gilgamesh]

Can't say I'm surprised that one of the winningest fighters in Boxing history doesn't take losing well.

He lost though. Fair and square.

Whether he ever admits it or not.

[brilo33]

Can't say I'm surprised that one of the winningest fighters in Boxing history doesn't take losing well.

He lost though. Fair and square.

Whether he ever admits it or not.

bit harsh gil he aint lost many to be fair

[Onetimeonly]

Can't say I'm surprised that one of the winningest fighters in Boxing history doesn't take losing well.

He lost though. Fair and square.

Whether he ever admits it or not.

[gilgamesh]

Can't say I'm surprised that one of the winningest fighters in Boxing history doesn't take losing well.

He lost though. Fair and square.

Whether he ever admits it or not.

bit harsh gil he aint lost many to be fair

Yeah I covered the he ain't lost many in my first sentence.

It's not harsh at all. He fought a great fight in spurts, and he lost. It certainly wasn't a performance to be embarrassed of. You still saw flashes of his brilliant skill.

But he lost.

[Nightmare Roy]

Can’t understand why guys like him and Wilder come out with BS like this. Take your L like a man and come back stronger, people just think your a tit talking like that, they must be really removed from reality to not realise that.

[Onetimeonly]

Can’t understand why guys like him and Wilder come out with BS like this. Take your L like a man and come back stronger, people just think your a tit talking like that, they must be really removed from reality to not realise that.

It's part of the mentality of a fighter, you have to think you're the best. Ever see anyone name the hardest puncher they've faced be someone that knocked them out?

[brilo33]

Can't say I'm surprised that one of the winningest fighters in Boxing history doesn't take losing well.

He lost though. Fair and square.

Whether he ever admits it or not.

bit harsh gil he aint lost many to be fair

Yeah I covered the he ain't lost many in my first sentence.

It's not harsh at all. He fought a great fight in spurts, and he lost. It certainly wasn't a performance to be embarrassed of. You still saw flashes of his brilliant skill.

But he lost.

mate i was joking ,but i totally agree i think i said it before you wrote it . i think your giving loma to much credit there people also forget that teo hit loma with a big shot and loma looked to hold , cant remember the rd yea i think in the end i might of gave loma 3 at most 4 rds some off them were 10/10 , i think that you really have to praise teo he did every thing right

[Onetimeonly]

Even more than the landed shots only lomas defensive prowess enabled him to avoid the whistling counters teo was firing from the opening bell. When he threw caution to the wind knowing he was behind, Lopez outfought and outgutted him in the last Rd to leave no doubt.

[jockpunk]

This was the easiest fight ever to score. 115-113 teo.

[candyslim]

I greatly admired Lomachenko. I expected him to win, I wanted him to win, he very definitely did not win.

I understand the mentality of a top fighter means he needs to have a fixable reason why he lost and why he'll put it right next time but keep it to yourself. Don't go broadcasting your belief or you'll come across as a whiner and a twat.

We've seen a great many injustices in boxing. This wasn't one of them. Loma you aren't going to care what I think but I'll bet I'm just one of a million people who have lost some respect for you, and some goodwill, owing to your bitching rather than your performance.

[Enlightened-One]

If Lomachenko refuses to contemplate and acknowledge the genuine reasons for his loss, then he'll be unable to address them in future fights.

If he's in denial and chooses to ignore his own faults, then he'll only end up repeating the same mistakes he made against Lopez.

Any fighter that starts slowly, by giving away the first six or seven rounds, is always going to face a monumental struggle to overcome the scoring deficit on the judges' scorecards, especially if they've also been outworked during the final few minutes of the bout.

It’s not as if Lomachenko can seriously pretend to have underestimated Lopez, considering most of us predicted that his bout against the American was always going to be a highly-competitive affair.

The fact that Lopez was an unbeaten world champion that is big at the weight, as well as being a youngster, whilst also gaining considerable experience outside the ring during his highly-publicised sparring sessions against the likes of Gervonta Davis, Yordenis Ugas, Jaron Ennis, Rolando Romero, Janelson Figueroa, Ashley Theophane and Devin Haney, meant that it was inevitable that he was always going to be a far better fighter than his resume implied.

[bobcatbox]

I greatly admired Lomachenko. I expected him to win, I wanted him to win, he very definitely did not win.

Yes he clearly lost a decision. Hard to argue robbery when you lose four to five straight rounds to open the fight.