Teofimo Lopez has never appeared unnerved inside the squared circle. However, following a shaky performance this past weekend against Sandor Martin, Lopez (18-1, 13 KOs) began questioning his own abilities in the ring.
“Do I still have it?” Asked Lopez to his handlers after eking out a close split decision victory. “Do I still got it?”
With the normally bombastic Lopez angling for a world title opportunity at 140 pounds, he hoped to send a statement to the rest of the division. But, despite the 25-year-old promising to end his year with a bang, Martin presented his younger foe with a bemusing puzzle all night long.
In addition to Martin boxing well on the outside, he also, at times, planted his feet and exchanged with Lopez on the inside. In the second round, in particular, the Spaniard sent his man crashing down to the canvas.
In any event, since nabbing the somewhat controversial victory, fans of the former unified champion at 135 pounds have begun to wonder whether or not Lopez will reign supreme as a world titlist.
Although Lopez has openly doubted himself, the hard-hitting star has swiftly refuted that he’s lacking confidence.
“I know I got it,” said Lopez on his social media account. “Remember, I give you all something to talk about now.”
As Lopez alludes to, the boxing world has candidly discussed and chastised him for his recent outing. Although Martin is steadfast in his belief that he did more than enough to pull out the victory, Lopez has already stated that he plans to forge ahead in his career. Ideally, Lopez hopes that he’ll be given the opportunity to swap fists with current WBC titlist, Regis Prograis. In terms of where Lopez’s belief presently stands, the 25-year-old appears to be as confident as ever. In fact, with countless questions pertaining to his self-assurance, Lopez has a question of his own issued in the direction of his supporters and naysayers.
“I know I got it. Are you dumb or dumber?”