On Saturday night, June 29, in the main event of Top Rank Boxing, Teofimo “The Takeover” Lopez will defend his WBO Junior Welterweight World Title against Steve Claggett (38-7-2, 26 KOs) at the James L. Knight Center in Miami Beach, Florida, and will be broadcast live on ESPN.
For challenger Steve Clagett, Saturday night's bout represents a life-changing opportunity, while defending champion Teofimo Lopez sees it as a busy fight designed to keep him active, sharp and focused.
In his second bout at 140 pounds, former unified lightweight champion Teofimo Lopez stepped into the ring to face the man who had once held the junior welterweight crown.
Josh Taylor was the undisputed champion at 140 pounds and remained the WBO champion even after vacating multiple belts.
The Teofimo Lopez vs. Josh Taylor match took place in June 2023. In the opening rounds of the bout, southpaw Taylor used his jab to close the distance, then got inside and landed some powerful punches to the body.
Lopez and Taylor traded blows equally over the next five rounds. Teofimo Lopez dictated the pace of the fight in the second half of the championship bout. Lopez's overall skill, hand speed, accuracy and punching power overwhelmed Taylor.
After 12 rounds, Teofimo Lopez won by unanimous decision with scores of 115-113, 115-113 and 117-111, making him a two-division world champion.
Eight months later, Lopez successfully defended his WBO junior welterweight title against Germaine Ortiz. Now, Teofimo Lopez (20-1, 13 KOs) is using the bout with Claggett as an opportunity to showcase what he has to offer and is planning a unification fight or a bout against a top pound-for-pound fighter.
Steve Claggett acknowledges he will step into the ring on Saturday night as a massive underdog, but Claggett is confident, motivated, prepared and ready to seize the opportunity.
Challenger Steve Claggett is an aggressive fighter who uses a high guard and always comes forward to land punches. Champion Teofimo Lopez is highly athletic, has speed, power and is a sharp counter puncher.
Fights are decided by style, and believe it or not, this could be a risky fight for Lopez. When the fight is at the highest level and the lights are shining bright, Teofimo Lopez is great, but when the fight is average, Lopez sometimes puts in below average performances.
Teofimo “The Takeover” Lopez's wish list includes a unification fight and a mega-fight with Terence “Bud” Crawford. It's an ambitious list, but before he can focus on that, he must get through Saturday night's bout against Steve “The Dragon” Claggett, live on ESPN.
