Teofimo Lopez and Richardson Hitchins Reach an Impasse
WBO junior welterweight champion “The Takeover” Teofimo Lopez (21-1, 13KO) and IBF champion Richardson Hitchins (19-0, 7KO) unification negotiations are already off to a rocky start. The Takeover can’t afford another failed fight attempt as the IBF champion wasn’t happy with the initial offer.
This is becoming a regular theme for Lopez, who continues to receive complaints about not sweetening the pot to land a fight. Boxing fans were excited when he took to social media, calling out Hitchins with the idea of a unification.
The IBF champion wasn’t pleased with the dollar amount and rejected the offer. In addition, he posted a message to Lopez requesting they send over a reasonable contract.
HE WASN’T TOO HAPPY
An infuriated WBO champion rushed to social media with a verbal attack and a video.
“Man, what kind of bitch shit is that? Imma tell you like this bro, you either going to fight me cuz you say you gonna beat me, or you don’t fight me at all, you punk bitch. How are you going to talk about all this madness about me, and how are you gonna box and beat the brakes off me . . . What are you talking about, ‘send a contract with the right numbers’? Shut that shit up, man!”
Lopez revealed low offers he took to fight champions like Vasyl Lomachenko, Richard Commey, and Josh Taylor. Well, context is key. Both Commey and Taylor were champions, so Lopez had to take low in those situations. The Lomachenko fight was during the pandemic inside an empty stadium, so money wasn’t going to be high due to low revenue.
DOES HE HAVE A POINT?
Some fans will feel that Hitchins should accept the offer and take the fight. Since we don’t know the exact dollar amount, we can only speculate. However, Lopez has had this issue before, which resulted in two-division champion Devin Haney rejecting an offer as well.
Hitchins has been attacking the fellow Brooklyn-born champion, claiming Lopez shouldn’t represent the state of New York in boxing. With a lackluster 2024, Lopez needs to make a splash in 2025. We can only hope cooler heads prevail in the end.
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