How Teofimo Lopez solved The Matrix code: Roundtable Discussion
Photo Credit: Mikey Williams/ Top Rank
Well, that was unexpected.Even those of us with the faith in Lopez to call a win (shoutout TFS’s own Philippe) didn’t think this would be on the cards. You don’t try and outbox the master boxer when you have the physical advantages Teofimo has, do you?
And yet Lopez did, boxing the boxer on his way to a deserved decision win. The takes (both hot and cold) have been flying since the fight played out, so we at The Fight Site decided to get together, talk it out, and see where we stand. Without further ado, then: Lomachenko vs Lopez, the breakdown.
Philippe Pocholle Marchetti : Life is good! Ok, so now that the fight happened let’s go back on a few points. To start off with my prediction. As mentioned in the intro, I did picked Teofimo to win by stoppage (around rounds 8 to 10) I even wrote that I don’t think Teofimo (or anyone else in the world for that matter) can have the capacity to focus and stay compose for 12 rounds against Lomachenko. Loma’s pressure is too good, too dangerous. People say Loma doesn’t have power, maybe he doesn’t have the heaviest hands but for sure he’s one of the most dangerous fighters when he gets going. And I was right about that, because when Loma took over he did hurt Teofimo (specially on the inside where he was the much better fighter) and as Loma was winning rounds late in the fight I feared he’d do a number on Teofimo in the last round and rallied enough to get a draw or a controversial decision. What I really didn’t expect and was missing from my prediction is that it’s actually Teofimo that played out Loma. Teo saw Loma’s comeback and accepted to deal with it, staying composed and saving energy as much as possible. Because when it came to Round 12, (which for me was almost the definitive round) nobody expected Teofimo to have enough energy, focus, maturity to beat up Lomachenko like he did. Teofimo Lopez Sr (his coach) even asked Teo to box (a la Roberto Duran vs Sugar Ray Leonard Rd 15) but Teo declined the proposition and offered to step up on the gas and go get his ridiculous number of belts. That Round 12, I didn’t see it coming and I don’t even think Teofimo Lopez Sr knew his son had this in him. I wasn’t surprised by Teo’s speed and accuracy otherwise, his shot selection was great (never forgot to hit the body) and he just knew that as long he’d be able to put Loma on the backfoot he’d be winning. Teofimo is so good that it took actually six or seven rounds for the Ukrainian to finally get past that jab, and right hook to the body. Even in the rounds that Loma won, Teofimo still landed decent shots. Ok, now the scorecards… They are awful. Absolutely disgusting and even though they favored the kid I’ve been supporting for a while they truly make me scared and concerned for Boxing’s future. That fight is a +1 or +2 round Teo at best. 116-112 was like the maximum you could get in my opinion. So to resume I wasn’t surprised by how the fight went (Teo’s great start, Loma’s great comeback) but even for me--who had been telling everyone that I see greatness in Teofimo Lopez--didn’t think he had the 12th round in him. Legend stuff. Amazing fight from two amazing talents. Nothing but respect. Lukasz Fenrych: Yeah, the final round was a real ‘bite down and secure it’ moment. He decided he needed to make the good final impression, and he did.
That said, unlike Mystic Philippe, what surprised me was the first few rounds. I knew Loma would start slow, wary of the size and power, but what I didn’t expect at all was Teo to have the better timing and range control of the two, parlaying his size and power advantage into a dominant positional display and disrupting Loma before he got going. He really showed us something we’d never properly seen before, which was that for all of Loma’s massive toolset once he’s inside, he really needs to be able to take the first angled step around before he can get going, and Lopez just never allowed that for seven rounds, with his disruptive jab to head and body, intercepting hook and small steps forward and back when needed, and turns with Lomachenko’s movement, to prevent Loma from finding any range and rhythm. And yes, the judges scorecards were atrocious. Julie Lederman’s card was a disgrace; Lomachenko clearly won at least rounds 9 through 11.
Philippe : I really ain’t no mystic though. I’m often wrong but I spent so much time watching Teofimo that it probably got to me how much potential he has and how far he can go. Obviously in my pick I had that “he will rise to the occasion” factor. You are right even though we saw glimpse of great range control and footwork. We never saw Teofimo being that good and for that long (Nakatani fight). Anyone feel like talking about how uneducated or vulnerable Teofimo looked on the inside compared to Loma ?
Lukasz : That was certainly notable, and it was an interesting dynamic that the massive powerful guy was the one who needed to keep the fight at range and the little fella was desperately trying to get in close. However, what really caught my eye about that part was not that Teo struggled there but the way he knew that would happen and mitigated it. His entire gameplan was built around protecting that weakness, and even when Loma started to have success at getting to that position, he mitigated it reasonably well by throwing a few uppercuts that badly limited Lomachenko’s volume, and on occasion by just shoving. It is something he’ll need to tidy up if he ever rematches, and in other fights especially as he moves up in weight, though.
Philippe : You’re very right about this Lukasz. I’m curious to see Teofimo at 140 lbs. Lopez vs Prograis would be amazing one day. We all mentioned that Teo’s physicality and the skills he displayed on the front foot was a massive reason why Loma could not get going early on. Loma’s a slow starter it’s true but he never start working that late in other fights. One thing that I’m wondering about Loma’s system is that if Teo didn’t “exposed” the limit of this system (high accuracy rate and volume but Loma only ever throw when he’s feeling he’s in a comfortable and safe position) so is the “lack of risk” from Loma’s offense something that future opponent could use against him ? Even though it’s almost certain that Loma will not face someone as skilled and physical as Teofimo.
Lukasz: I think other opponents will try, but it’s not going to be as easy as Lopez made it look sometimes. As much as it did expose a certain lack of tools in certain positions, it’s still going to be almost impossible to execute a similar gameplan. Nicholas Walters, after all, tried something quite similar, and even had momentary successes in checking Loma’s movement, but it never lasted long and he got ultimately humiliated. Devin Haney might be big and fast enough to take similar advantage but I don’t think smaller fighters are likely to have much success, certainly none of the ones currently on the table.
Philippe : I personally wish Loma would go down to 130 lbs and try one more run there.
Kyle McLachlan: While I agree that Lomachenko’s size was an issue, my biggest takeaway is that Lopez not only out-manned Loma, but out-skilled him.
He didn’t allow any exits to be open for Loma--which is why the great Ukrainian went backwards for much of the first six rounds--and when he trapped Loma on the ropes and even the back door was slammed shut behind him, he made him pay with heavy body shots.
The outcry during and after that, ‘Loma had a bad gameplan’, and ‘why did Lomacheko do nothing for the first six rounds’ really shows up a lot of folks to not having a darn clue what they’re watching. Front hand and foot position was dominated by Lopez early, and although Lomachenko made some excellent adjustments from the seventh rounds onwards--Lopez did not capitulate late, punctuating his early work with some heavy blows in the twelfth to seal victory.
So it’s not just size but skill that won the day. Is there anything you gentlemen think that Loma could do better in a rematch? As for me, I could see Lopez building on this just as easily and winning even more emphatically.
Philippe : I mention in the Teofimo article (Editor’s Note: Soon to be published) how he never let Loma escape to the side, and was at one point forcing one way or the other to Loma. Amazing ring craft. I also love how Lopez stayed loyal to his main weapons when it started to become tough for him. Like the shoulder roll with the uppercut behind it saved him many times from Loma gaining momentum. He also never stopped targeting the body. I think the rematch would be easier for Teofimo Lopez. I want to see Teofimo at 140 soon and Loma at 130. Lukasz: Personally I feel like the shoulder roll itself isn’t great and left him out of shape a few times, but the uppercut was a very important part of the fight.
Philippe : Yes you’re right! Loma actually had a good idea when he threw that left straight right in the chest of Lopez (and right in the middle of that shoulder roll position) to come around with the right hook over the lead shoulder of Teo.
Lukasz: To go back to Kyle’s question about adjustments- I do think there are things Loma can do in a rematch, in particular bringing more tools both clean and slightly dirty to snarl up Teo’s movement and vision from the outside and open his way in (it was very notable that Loma’s best moments came after Lopez grew frustrated with rough tactics and a few professional fouls). Stepping on feet more, hitting while in the clinch (legally of course), but also just leaving his jab hanging out a bit to obstruct vision, and to hinder Teo’s turns as he follows Loma’s steps.At the same time Lopez was aware enough of his own weaknesses here that I think there’s very little chance we wouldn’t see him improve yet again.
Philippe : Loma’s complete lack of defense for body shots really didn’t help him yesterday. That high guard and head movement protected him very well but that body got touched so many times. It’s a concern in a rematch. Everytime Teofimo feinted a jab and went to the body or level changed he landed heavy shots to the body. That’s one big concern.
Kyle: My biggest concern in a rematch is what we saw in the second Alvarez-Golovkin match: that the younger fighter will simply add more tools to their toolbox and approach the fight a different way, thus negating Loma-Lopez II starting as ‘round thirteen’ of the first fight and meaning Lomachenko will be flummoxed again.
It should go without saying though that there is little need to look forward to a rematch right now: Instead, let’s bask in the glory of a new pound-for-pound calibre fighter emerging. Teofimo Lopez is the real deal.
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For more post-fight analysis of Lopez-Lomachenko, keep your eyes peeled for a patented Philippe breakdown of the fight, and also check out ‘Tengridome Episode 4’ which delves into the styles clash (and much more) that played out in what was easily the most anticipated boxing match of 2020.