There is a new undisputed lightweight king. Teofimo Lopez toppled Vasiliy Lomachenko by unanimous decision in a superstar-making performance Saturday evening from the MGM Grand Conference Center, and in doing so, he became the youngest undisputed champion (23) in the four-belt era.
Lopez (16-0, 12 KOs) won by wide margins (119-109, 118-110 and 116-112), fulfilling the prophecy by his father/trainer, Teofimo Lopez Sr., who predicted long ago that his son would be undisputed champion by his 16th professional fight.
Lomachenko (14-2, 10 KOs), a three-weight world champion, saw his 13-bout winning streak come to an end.
Said Lopez, “I had to dig deep, man. I’m thankful. I’m grateful. And each and every day, I take that in. I thank God first because I couldn’t do it without him.
“I’m a fighter. I gotta dig in deep. I knew he was coming. I didn’t know if they had him up on the scorecards or not, and I love to fight. I can bang, too. I don’t care, man. I’ll take one to give one. That’s what a true champion does. I find a way to win.
“You just gotta keep pressuring him, press the gas, stick the jab and don’t really give him that opportunity to set up. Every time he did want to throw, I had something ready for him.”
