Boxing

“A Little Coo Coo” – Roach questions Teofimo’s focus on January 31st

Published

11 months ago

December 10, 2025

Image: Eddie Hearn Backs Lucrative Ennis-Lopez Bout Despite Widespread Fan Disapproval and Teofimo's Undersized Move to Welterweight

Lamont Roach says Teofimo Lopez is hurting “psychic odors” during fights and fought against “pure boxers”.

Roach claims that Lopez’s needy performance is one of the reasons he chose Shakur Stevenson to beat him on January 31 in their headliner on DAZN.

Lamont doesn’t think that will happen “Super Demanding Fight” Shakur (24-0, 11 KO) defeated WBO welterweight champion Teofimo (22-1, 13 KO). For Stevenson to dominate him the way he did over his recent opponents Josh Padley and Artem Harutyunyan would be embarrassing.

Neat Boxers: Lopez’s Kryptonite

“It’s hit or miss. There’s a bit of coo coo. He has minor mental breakdowns from time to time,” Lamont Roach said Ring Champs Podcastchoosing Shakur Stevenson over the mentally untethered Teofimo Lopez. I think Shakur will win and I don’t think it will be a super demanding fight. His IQ will frustrate him.”

This is demanding to believe considering the problems Stevenson had against William Zepeda last July and during his 2023 fight against Edwin De Los Santos. These are the only two quality players Stevenson has had to face in the last three years, starting in 2022.

If Stevenson stands still – risky

It still won’t be simple for Shakur if he stays in the pocket against Teofimo like he did against Zepeda, Josh Padley and Artem Harutyunyan. If he chooses to remain still, he will be hit.

Shakur’s mobility isn’t good enough to keep Teofimo from cutting off the ring and forcing him to trade. We saw him do this in the February 2024 fight against Jamain Ortiz. He moves better than Shakur and has more speed and arm strength. Teofimo repeatedly accosted him and forced him into exchanges.

Jamaine had the hand speed and punch combination to fend off Lopez. Stevenson can’t do that because he’s not a combination hitter and he doesn’t have power.

Memories of Sandor Martin and Kambosos

“When you look at Teo’s performances against guys who are pure boxers, it’s just like that [hit or miss]. He almost lost to Sandor Martin. Some people thought he lost to Sandor Martin. Look at the Kambosos fight. This is a fight that Kambosos never expected to win, and he also won a grueling match against him,” Roach said.

Stevenson would never fight like Kambosos did with Teofimo, trading demanding shots. He’s not that type of warrior. Southpaw Sandor Martin was able to catch Lopez with sneaky right hooks that he didn’t notice. He had a way of throwing that was demanding for Lopez to predict.

Robert Segal was a key voice in Boxing News 24providing fight news, previews and analysis with direct access to insider information. Covering sports for over a decade, his work focuses on champions, challengers and emerging talent around the world. Known for his edged in-ring perspective, Robert brings fans closer to the action with straightforward, learned reporting.

Last update: 12/09/2025

Boxing

Robert Garcia Analyzes Tim Tszyus Odds Against Erislandy Lara | Boxing News

Published

2 hours ago

November 7, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

"Robert Garcia Analyzes Tim Tszyu's Odds Against Erislandy Lara | Boxing News"

Tim Tszyu seeks to become Australia’s third multi-divisional boxing world champion when he competes for Erislandy Lara’s WBA middleweight title next month, and ahead of the action, trainer Robert Garcia has offered his thoughts on the fight.

Tszyu lost his WBO super-welterweight title in a defeat to Sebastian Fundora back in 2024 and twice failed to reclaim 154lb honours, both against Bakhram Murtazaliev and in a rematch with Fundora.

Since then, the Aussie has stepped up to middleweight and scored a career-best win over Errol Spence Jr earlier this yearand now, the 32-year-old could join lead trainer Jeff Fenech and Liam Paro as his nation’s third two-weight world champion, if he can trump 43-year-old.

Speaking with ProBox TVRobert Garcia, who trains a potential future Tszyu opponent in Vergil Ortiz, admitted that he is leaning towards the home fighter, but noted that Lara will not be phased by competing in the challenger’s backyard.

“We can probably lean towards Tim Tsyzu because he is fighting at home, in front of his hometown, but Lara is not the fighter that brings in a lot of fans following him.

“He doesn’t have a following, he is not one that is going to sell out arenas, so even if it is in the United States, it is likely that most of the people are going to be [there] for Tim Tszyu because Australians do travel and Tim Tszyu has a lot of fans.

“For Lara, going to Australia is like going to Las Vegas or going to New York because he never has that following anyways. Anywhere he goes, he is going to be against the crowd. So, I think for him it is going to be one of those performances where it doesn’t make a difference if he is going to Tim Tsyzu’s hometown.”

Tszyu-Lara takes place at the Cbus Super Stadium in Queensland, Australia on Sunday 13 December.

Boxing

Malik Scott Predicts Knockout Victory for Jai Opetaia in Upcoming Fight

Published

2 hours ago

November 7, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

"Malik Scott Predicts Knockout Victory for Jai Opetaia in Upcoming Fight"

Deontay Wilder’s former head coach Malik Scott has delivered a knockout prediction for the American’s upcoming showdown with Jai Opetaia.

The pair will square off at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on December 11, with Opetaia making his heavyweight debut on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua.

Despite him being the naturally smaller man, many are favouring the Australian – a former two-time world cruiserweight champion – to defeat his 10-years-older opponent.

It is, after all, generally accepted that Wilder has declined significantly since his trilogy bout with Furywho survived two knockdowns and scored an 11th-round knockout in their 2021 encounter.

Back then, Wilder had just joined forces with Scott, his former opponent, and the pair maintained their fighter-trainer relationship through subsequent defeats against Joseph Parker and Zhilei Zhang.

With Wilder now operating under different coaches, though, Scott has shared a balanced view of the Opetaia fight with Seconds Out.

“The fight’s got dynamite written all over it. Jai Opetaia is very dangerous, but he’s a smaller man that’s been hurt by smaller men than Deontay, slower men than Deontay.

“I’ve never seen Opetaia get hit by nobody like Deontay; I’ve seen Deontay get hit by bigger punchers than Opetaia. [But] one thing we can expect in this fight is a knockout.

“The name of the fight is ‘bad intentions’ – at least that’s what I’m calling it, because that’s what they share in common. What they share in common is mentality – they both are trying to hurt you.”

While he stopped short of predicting a winner, it is perhaps telling that Scott, despite his relationship with Wilder, has not explicitly favoured him to win by knockout.