“You know what he told me at the end of the fight?” Teofimo Sr. said Punsh Dunk Boxer canal. “He said, ‘Dad, he made me feel like a little kid.'”

Teofimo Sr. then suggested that something outside the ring may have mentally affected his son before the fight.

“I said, ‘Man, I know, bro. I know what happened. “I don’t know what happened to you, but I don’t know if anyone threatened your ass and what happened in that fight,” Teofimo Sr. said. “He won’t tell me, but that wasn’t my son in that fight.”

Teofimo Sr. insisted that the strategy going into the fight was for Lopez to stay disciplined and attack Stevenson from the outside rather than throw punches at close range.

“The whole plan was to outsmart this kid, stay on the outside and outsmart him,” Teofimo Sr. said. “Then he just came in from the beginning and got punished.”

The longtime coach compared the performance to Teofimo’s tougher performance against Arnold Barboza Jr. and argued that the difference between the two fights was obvious.

“That wasn’t my son in that fight,” Teofimo Sr. repeated. “Everyone knows that my son is a skillful fighter.”

Teofimo himself also appeared frustrated while discussing the criticism surrounding the defeat, and defended his willingness to take risky fights.

“I want to come back,” Lopez said. “Canelo was just avoiding David. But when I go and fight David, they say, ‘Well, he got beat up.’ What do you think would happen with Canelo?

Teofimo also stated that he will continue to favor many of the top names from different divisions.

“I could beat any person Canelo beat. I could beat any person Triple G beat. I could beat any person Caleb Plant beat,” Lopez said.

The comments quickly sparked reactions from fans online, especially Teofimo Sr.’s suggestion that something may have affected his son’s psyche heading into the Stevenson fight.

Daniel Dubois candidly shared his thoughts on an immediate rematch with Fabio Wardley, whom he stopped in the 11th round of a thrilling fight last Saturday.

The two clashed in a brutal heavyweight war in Manchester, with Dubois surviving two knockdowns to become a two-time world champion.

Interestingly, this was the 28-year-old’s first appearance since last July was vacated as IBF champion after a decisive fifth-round stoppage against Oleksandr Usyk.

The lack of momentum had little impact on his overall performance, however, as “DDD” fought like the man who possessed and dethroned the previously undefeated Wardley.

After knocking down his fighter in rounds one and three, Wardley found it complex to find further success as Dubois repeatedly landed his powerful jab.

It must be admitted that the Ipswich fighter showed great determination in trying to retain his WBO title, but could have been stopped several times before referee Howard Foster intervened.

Queensberry’s promoter, Frank Warren, then revealed during Dubois’s post-fight interview that there was a rematch clause in the contract.

When asked about a potential return, Dubois said at the post-fight press conference that he would be more than joyful to jump right into the fire.

“If that happens…yes, continue.”

Time will tell if Wardley activates his rematch clause, although both fighters certainly deserve a long break after the mammoth brawl.

Meanwhile, heavyweight prodigy Moses Itauma is the top contender for the WBO heavyweight title and has said he would have no hesitation in signing up to fight as challenger.

Andre Dirrell believes that Errol Spence Jr. is taking a hazardous risk by returning from a three-year hiatus against Tim Tszyu, warning that the punishment Spence has taken throughout his career could become a major problem in the fight.

Spence will face Tszyu at the 158-pound catchweight on July 25 in Australia in his first fight since a ninth-round loss to Terence Crawford in 2023.

Dirrell had doubts whether Tszyu was the right opponent to return after such a long absence.

“Listen, it’s Tim Tszyu, man. We all know he’s a tough guy,” Dirrell said in an interview Fight. “A fight like this deserves a proper comeback.”

Dirrell said Tszyu’s aggressive style could force Spence into a physical fight that becomes hazardous for a veteran returning after years away from the ring.

“Both guys are going to get beat up a little bit,” Dirrell said. “My question is: How will Errol get out of this?”

The former super middleweight champion also touched on Spence’s punishment against Crawford, as well as the damage Spence was already feeling to his body from previous fights and the 2019 Ferrari accident, during which Spence survived a brutal crash in Dallas.

“His brain remembers the type of punishment he took,” Dirrell said, discussing Spence’s loss to Crawford. “When he goes in there and starts shooting, whether he thinks he’s ready for it or not, his training may not be.”

Tszyu enters the fight as a younger and more vigorous fighter. Even though he lost to Sebastian Fundora and Bakhram Murtazaliev, many fans still see him as one of the toughest fighters in the division and the fighters with the most physical pressure.

Dirrell admitted he was still hopeful that Spence could make a successful return to fighting, but he had doubts whether the former unified welterweight champion needed to come back at all.

“He should have felt comfortable hanging it up now,” Dirrell said. “He didn’t need a victory to sail off into the sunset.”

Dan Ambrose is a boxing journalist at Boxing News 24, respected for his direct analysis and extensive coverage of the global fighting landscape. His reports focus on the most vital fights, division development and the most discussed stories in sports.

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Last update: 2026/05/12 at 12:07