Teofimo Andrés López Rivera is an American professional boxer.
Place of Birth, Education
He was born on July 30, 1997 in Brooklyn.
He began boxing at the age of 6 – his father Teofimo Lopez Sr. trained him.
Career
In amateurs, he had 170 fights, about 150 of them he won.
In 2013, he won gold at the national tournament “Silver Gloves”. In the same year, at the National Youth Championship of the country, he lost to Gonzalo Rodriguez.
At the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, he competed for Honduras. In the first fight, by decision of the judges, he lost to the Frenchman Sofian Oumia – 0-3.
Professional career
In November 2016, he signed a contract with Top Rank Promotions and made his debut as a pro.
During 2017, he had 6 fights – he won all of them.
On May 12, 2018, in the undercard of the fight Vasyl Lomachenko – Jorge Linares knocked out Vitor Jones in 1:04 minutes.
On July 14, he knocked out William Silva in the 6th round, and on December 8, again on the undercard of Lomachenko’s fight, he knocked out Mason Menard at 44 seconds and took secondary titles.
At the beginning of 2019, he continued his winning streak. On February 2, he knocked out Diego Magdaleno, a former two-time contender for the world title, in the 7th round, and on April 20, he forced Edis Tuttley to refuse to continue the fight after a blow to the body in the 5th round.
After that, Top Rank brought him to a championship fight for the IBF title. On July 19, he met with Masayoshi Nakatani for mandatory challenger status. During the fight, the Japanese had the advantage, but in the end, Lopez won by unanimous decision.
Lopez vs. Commey
In December 2019, Lopez entered the fight against Richard Commie. At stake was the IBF title, which was held by the representative of Ghana, as well as the chance to hold a unification fight with the WBC, WBA and WBO champion Lomachenko.
Already in the 2nd round, Lopez knocked down his opponent with a right hook and, after resuming the fight, completed the case. This is how he won the IBF belt.
Lopez vs. Lomachenko
Since 2018, Lopez and his father have publicly challenged Lomachenko to a fight. In interviews and social networks, the Ukrainian was repeatedly criticized and insisted on a fight.
After winning the IBF title, the fight was planned to be held on May 30, 2020, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, it was postponed. Both boxers refused intermediate fights and decided to wait for a face-to-face meeting.
The fight for the title of undisputed lightweight champion between Lopez and Lomachenko took place on October 17 in Las Vegas, at the MGM Grand Ballroom, without spectators.
From the first rounds, Lopez worked actively – he kept Lomachenko at a distance and constantly threw punches. The Ukrainian began to act more aggressively only from the 7th round, but the opponent did not deviate from his plan.
The fight lasted all 12 rounds and ended with a unanimous decision of the judges – 116-112, 119-109, 117-111.
On October 17, 2020, Lopez became the youngest undisputed champion in boxing history, the fifth holder of 4 belts at the same time and the first in the lightweight division.
Lopez vs. Kambosos
Lopez was supposed to make his first defense as the undisputed champion against IBF mandatory challenger George Kambosos. Due to a dispute with Top Rank over fees, it came to promotional bidding. They were won by Triller Fight Club, offering $6 million.
Initially, the fight was planned for June 19, 2021, but 4 days before the fight, Lopez was diagnosed with coronavirus, so the date was postponed to August 14.
Triller later wanted to hold a meeting in Australia around October 17, but Lopez opposed it. The IBF obliged the organizers to hold the fight in the United States by October 17. As a result, the fight was scheduled for October 5, 2021 at Madison Square Garden in New York, and later postponed to October 4.
In less than 2 weeks, Triller changed plans again – they wanted to hold the fight on October 16 at the Barclays Center. Lopez initially objected, but later agreed. Kambosos refused and went to the IBF through a lawyer, claiming a breach of contract. On October 2, Triller refused to organize the fight and the rights passed to Eddie Hearn and Matchroom Boxing.
The fight for the IBF, WBA Super, WBO and WBC Franchise belts took place on November 27 at Madison Square Garden. Lopez was the favorite and went forward from the beginning, but at the end of the 1st round he was knocked down after a right straight. In the 10th round, Lopez responded with a knockdown, but the opponent survived. The judges’ decisions are 114-113 for López, 115-111 and 115-112 for Kambosos. Lopez suffered his first defeat and lost his titles.
Since August 13, 2022, the boxer has been competing in the first welterweight division – he made his debut with an early victory over Pedro Campa.
Lopez vs. Martin
On December 10, 2022, Lopez fought Sandor Martin for the status of a mandatory WBC welterweight contender. He started confidently, but already in the 2nd round he was knocked down. Despite this, he acted more actively and won by split decision.
Lopez vs. Taylor
From June 10, 2023, the boxer became the champion in the second weight category – he defeated Josh Taylor, the former undisputed champion.
Future Career
From 2024 to 2025, he defended his title three times.
On January 31, 2026, he came out against Shakur Stevenson. The latter won and took the title in the fourth weight category.
Marital Status
He married Cynthia Ortiz on April 23, 2019, in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
In June 2023, before the fight with Taylor, Lopez announced that his ex-wife had filed for divorce.
