Teofimo Lopez confronts father over corner work after Stevenson defeat

Teofimo Lopez has confronted his father, Teofimo Sr, over the corner advice he received during his unanimous decision loss to Shakur Stevenson in January. Lopez criticised the work in his corner but has not indicated that he plans to remove his father as head coach.

Stevenson outboxed Lopez throughout the bout, with Lopez taking only one round. The result saw Stevenson dethrone Lopez and become a four-division world champion at 140 pounds.

Lopez’s frustration centred on the lack of useful instructions between rounds. He felt that, while he was taking punishment and Stevenson was finding opportunities to add to his advantage, the corner focused on highlighting his shortcomings instead of providing a way to change the fight.

The defeat has led Lopez to move up to 147 pounds. He is due to challenge Rolando Romero, the WBA champion, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday as he attempts to rebuild his career and become a world champion in a third weight class.

The role of Lopez Sr remains a key issue before that fight. His work at Madison Square Garden attracted heavy criticism, with his approach offering little direction as Stevenson continued to control the contest. Lopez nevertheless believes there was no need to end the father-and-son coaching partnership.

At 29, Lopez now faces pressure to produce a stronger performance against Romero. The move to welterweight gives him a fresh setting after the Stevenson defeat, but the corner relationship that came under scrutiny in that loss is still in place for his next bout.