Teofimo Lopez revealed on social media that he will be trained by Eddy Reynoso. Teo Sr. will still be training him as well.
Being trained by Reynoso will allow Teofimo to rub shoulders with Canelo Alvarez. That may not make a difference at this point because Teofimo has been acting wacky since his grueling fight against Vasily Lomachenko in 2020, and some feel he’s no longer cogent.
Reynoso is a good trainer, but he can only do so much. He’s not a magician who can take a fading fighter like Teofimo and make him into a mini Canelo.
Teofimo was at his best when he fought at lightweight and used his size to beat smaller fighters. But since moving up to 140, he’s looked like garbage and should have a record of 3-2 instead of 5-0 since making the move. Reynoso isn’t going to be able to turn water into wine and make something out of Teo. He’s a lost cause/
Teofimo’s Erratic Behavior
Teofimo is out in left field, utterly bizarre, unpredictable, and not someone you can count on winning if he’s matched against a reasonably tough opponent. His fights with Jaime Ortiz, George Kambosos, and Sandor Martin were examples.
Reynoso will need to be a miracle worker to turn 27-year-old Teofimo’s career around. He’s been struggling ever since moving up to 140 in 2022.
He still looks bad even with Top Rank feeding Teo against tomato cans. We saw that in Teofimo’s last fight against Steve Claggett on June 29th and in his matches against Jaime Ortiz, Sandor Martin, and Pedro Campa. You can conclude that Teofimo is on the slide, and it doesn’t matter that he’s got Reynoso training him. He’s going to continue to struggle.
Lopez (21-1, 13 KOs) still holds the WBO light welterweight title, and he’s not been in a big fight for several. Moreover, he’s underperformed repeatedly since 2021, and his stock has dropped to the point where he’s mostly known by fans for his bizarre comments.
Is It Too Late For Teo?
Top Rank still promotes Teofimo, but he’s looking to become a free agent. Again, Teofimo last fought in June against fringe contender Claggett and performed terribly, taking punishment in a fight that he was expected to easily win. It was anything but easy.
That fight and his matches against Ortiz and Martin showed that Teofimo wasn’t one of the elite light welterweights. He’s a B-level guy who needs to be carefully matched to kkee[ his career above water.
Not ☝️ but ✌️ TRAINER OF THE YEAR (Eddie Futch) Award winners in my corner!!!!!!!!! #BOXING #NoBoxingNoLife #TheTakeover #Champion pic.twitter.com/pk8OmNbOxc
— Teofimo Lopez (@TeofimoLopez) November 22, 2024
“He’s struggling to find relevancy without getting in the ring. He had the opportunity to fight Devin, but you keep saying you want to fight Bud Crawford. That fight isn’t on the table. Crawford didn’t want to fight you, and Gervonta Davis is not on the table for him,” said Bill Haney to Vlad TV about Teofimo Lopez.
“He’s saying things to stay relevant. There was a time when Teo was doing his thing. He was doing backflips. He was making headlines inside the ring. We’re talking more about what he’s saying outside the ring than inside the ring. I think that’s what he’s suffering from.
“He hasn’t had any exciting fights. He doesn’t have anyone on the table that is realistically that he can fight. So, he’s just reaching. Wherever he learned it from, I don’t want to put it at, but he definitely has some build-up hatred towards us,” said Bill about Teofimo.
If Teofimo were to fight Devin Haney, it would be an interesting one, but it likely wouldn’t end well for Teo. Haney is a crafty fighter who would outsmart him just like Sandor Martin and Jaime Ortiz both did. However, they were given the shaft by the judges, but they clearly got the better of Teofimo and should have won.
Teofimo is hard to beat due to his A-side popularity that still exists, but his career is still sinking because the fans aren’t stupid. They see Teo being given controversial wins repeatedly, and they recognize that he’s not someone to get excited about.
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