Junior welterweight titleholder Teofimo Lopez Jnr on Friday confirmed that he has officially added Eddy Reynoso to his team as co-trainer with his father Teofimo Lopez Snr, as reported by talkSPORT boxing editor Michael Benson.
Lopez, 21-1 (13 KOs), had already spent time working alongside unified super middleweight titleholder Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and Reynoso, the 2022 Trainer of the Year and longtime Canelo coach. And on Friday he posted a photo of himself, Teofimo Snr and Reynoso, along with the following message, on his X social media account:
“Not but TRAINER OF THE YEAR (Eddie Futch) Award winners in my corner!”
Shortly after, Reynoso retweeted Lopez Jnr’s post with a quick message of his own:
“Let’s do it.”
Lopez, 27, enjoyed a rocket-ship rise at lightweight, where he won a title in a convincing stoppage of Richard Commey in 2019 and then unified belts with a signature win over future Hall of Famer Vasiliy Lomachenko in 2020. At the time, Lopez was considered among boxing’s ultra-elite – a top-five pound-for-pound fighter on some lists.
But a lackluster split decision loss to George Kambosos Jnr in 2021 marked a setback that seemed to send Lopez spinning, in and seemingly outside the ring. A subsequent move up to junior welter has produced mixed results, from the good (a unanimous decision over Josh Taylor to earn his current belt) to the mediocre (a split decision win over Sandor Martin and an unimpressive if wide decision over Steve Claggett in Lopez’s most recent fight, in June).
Lopez Jnr’s tense-at-times relationship with his father and various personal struggles have often been aired publicly. Whether they have contributed to any of his inconsistencies in the ring can only be speculated on, but the official enlistment of Reynoso – a steady, relatively low-key figure by boxing standards – may not only provide Lopez Jnr with expert coaching but also a much-needed sounding board and buffer.
The unofficial arrangement already seemed to be paying dividends, and even received the buy-in of the mercurial Lopez Snr.
“My father and Reynoso are talking together, and I think that’s the best [option],” Lopez Jnr said of the co-trainer setup in September. “I don’t move without my father, and my father has definitely pushed this move for me to go to Canelo’s camp, and my dad was there. It’s been great. We’ll see what happens.”
Although Lopez Jnr hasn’t fought since the Claggett bout and doesn’t yet have his next fight lined up, the arrival of a world-class trainer and harmony in his camp can only be characterized as positive developments. So far, so good.
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