Teofimo Lopez recently shared that he declined an offer to fight Ryan Garcia because it didn't meet his expectations.
After winning the WBO junior welterweight championship against Josh Taylor, Lopez has expressed his goal of securing significant paydays for his fights. Discussions about a potential match between Lopez and Garcia arose when Oscar De La Hoya mentioned the possibility of a fight on Super Bowl weekend. Lopez, a two-weight and two-time lineal champion, has an impressive record, with just one loss to George Kambosos Jr.
Despite notable victories against Vasiliy Lomachenko, Richard Commey, and Taylor, Lopez has struggled to fill seats in his hometown matches. In contrast, Garcia's fight against Gervonta Davis, even though he didn't win, sold over 1.2 million pay-per-views, earning Garcia $30 million. This success was boosted by having the highest gate of the year, approximately $22 million.
However, the offer presented to Lopez for the Garcia fight positioned him as the B-side, causing dissatisfaction due to his accomplishments and achievements in the boxing world.
“When you’re the best, when you are the guy, when you bring major sponsors, endorsements, big major business deals, when you offer me a 1.5 [million dollars] stake in the piece—f–k you. So yeah I declined the offer,” Lopez said
Despite this, Lopez has ambitious plans for the future. A potential unification bout with the winner of Devin Haney and Regis Prograis is on the horizon. Additionally, there's consideration for a rematch with Kambosos at the 140 weight class. However, unless Lopez can connect with boxing fans, securing those substantial purses might pose a challenge. Nevertheless, the roadmap for Lopez's future endeavors remains clear.
“What’s next for me is world wide takeover, that’s what’s next. I want to go to Italy, I want to take it to other places in different ways. I got a lot of fan base in Africa, too, I want to go out there. My whole thing is taking it global because nobody else is going to help me in the boxing game no more,” Lopez stated.