Teofimo Lopez Jr. offers updates after camp with Canelo Alvarez

LAS VEGAS – For not having a fight on the calendar, Teofimo Lopez Jr. has a great deal going on.

The WBO 140-pound titleholder stopped by the Saul “Canelo” Alvarez-Edgar Berlanga weigh-in Friday to update reporters on his happenings after turning away a welterweight title fight with Brian Norman Jr., getting called out by Ryan Garcia, pursuing Terence Crawford and training alongside Alvarez.

Lopez (21-1, 13 KOs) even found time to call out lightweight titleholder Gervonta Davis, who is moving toward a late-November or mid-December ring return.

“Hey Tank! Give me a fight, brotha! He ain’t fighting, I ain’t fighting … what’s up?” Lopez said of Davis. “I don’t like people saying I’m ducking somebody. Why do I beat him? Cause I’m ‘The Takeover,’ that’s why.”

Lopez last fought June 29, a second consecutive lacking decision against a lacking opponent delivered him by promoter Top Rank. He defeated Steve Claggett by unanimous decision but then balked at Norman, 23, stating that he wanted to fight a bigger name than the newly elevated WBO welterweight belt holder from Georgia.

“I would like Crawford,” Lopez repeated Friday.

But so would two-belt 154-pound champion Sebastian Fundora, while four-division champion Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) has his heart set on landing a Canelo fight next year.

Adding to the fray, suspended-until-April Ryan Garcia reported on X this week that he wants to fight Lopez.

“My thing is stay in shape and stay focused, and whoever wants to put a contract out there for me that makes the most sense, we’ll do it,” Lopez said.

In the meantime, Lopez has been seen training alongside Alvarez under 2022 trainer of the year Eddy Reynoso.

Lopez clarified that his father-trainer, Teofimo Lopez Sr., is involved and approves of the union with Reynoso.

“My father and Reynoso are talking together, and I think that’s the best [option],” he said. “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.”

Alvarez has indicated that it’s possible Lopez will become a full-time fighter in Reynoso’s gym.

Lopez said he appreciates training alongside the world’s best-known fighter.

“It’s beautiful. It’s two great fighters. Myself and Canelo,” Lopez said. “We talk, we exchange knowledge – things that he has learned, things that I have learned – and we go back and forth on it. The best thing I learned about it is, I’m just warming up.

“It’s not just ego and pride. It’s just one guy trying to help the other and learn from each other. Whether you want to say it’s a lions’ community, it’s big and I’m grateful that Canelo – with open arms – accepted me to go into the camp.”

While an individual familiar with Lopez’s situation said it’s unlikely that he’ll fight by year’s end, as the fighter is navigating some personal and financial situations, and Top Rank has filled its remaining 2024 dates on ESPN.

“I’m trying to stay active,” Lopez said.

Floating the interest in a pay-per-view fight with Premier Boxing Champions’ Davis qualifies as a last grasp.

Until then, Lopez weighed in on Saturday’s meeting of his former Top Rank roster mate Berlanga and his new training partner, Alvarez.

“Berlanga has to keep active, keep throwing jabs, be productive, not letting [Alvarez] think,” Lopez said. “You can’t pick shots with Canelo. That’s what he’s known for. He’s great at that. Not letting him think is the biggest thing.”

That being said, Lopez admitted there’s good reason Alvarez is a -1600 betting favorite.

“Seeing it from my point of view, going into the camp with Canelo, I don’t see it going past seven, guys,” Lopez said.

Lance Pugmire is BoxingScene’s senior U.S. writer and an assistant producer for ProBox TV. Pugmire has covered boxing since the early 2000s, first at the Los Angeles Times and then at The Athletic and USA Today. He won the Boxing Writers’ Association of America’s Nat Fleischer Award in 2022 for career excellence.