{"id":363961,"date":"2026-07-10T09:00:44","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T03:30:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/?p=363961"},"modified":"2026-07-10T09:00:44","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T03:30:44","slug":"teofimo-lopez-explains-why-fighting-friend-rolly-romero-had-to-occur","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/2026\/07\/10\/teofimo-lopez-explains-why-fighting-friend-rolly-romero-had-to-occur\/","title":{"rendered":"Teofimo Lopez Explains Why Fighting Friend Rolly Romero ‘had To Occur’"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Teofimo Lopez insists his upcoming welterweight title fight with Rolly Romero proves that friendships should never prevent boxing\u2019s biggest matchups from being made.<\/p>\n

Lopez will challenge Romero for the WBA welterweight title on August 22 in Las Vegas on DAZN PPV, making his debut at 147 kilos. While some fighters have avoided facing close friends, Lopez believes their long history made the bout much more meaningful somewhat than less.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe go way back from 2015,\u201d Teofimo said to Mike Coppinger of The Ring. \u201cWe built a relationship, a friendship at the identical time while climbing the ranks in skilled boxing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe now we\u2019ve come to terms where we\u2019ve got to fight one another to let everybody know, yeah, it\u2019s cool to be friends, but in the case of competition, in the case of what we like to do, we\u2019ve got to place the whole lot to the side and make the fight occur.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Teofimo pointed to his 2019 victory over former lightweight champion Richard Commey as one other example of separating business from friendship. Although he admitted it was difficult facing someone he respected, he said those opportunities are a part of the game.<\/p>\n

He also argued that modern boxing has moved away from the mindset that when produced lots of the sport\u2019s biggest fights.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt is a recent thing where the fellows are saying they don\u2019t need to fight one another because they\u2019re friends,\u201d Teofimo said. \u201cI believe we want to bring that back. Look how much boxing has grown since then. Look how much noise it\u2019s brought and look how much entertainment as well. I believe we just must bring that back, and it starts August 22.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The fight gives Teofimo an instantaneous opportunity to change into a three-division world champion after spending the past several years campaigning at light welterweight. Rolly will likely be making the primary defense of the WBA welterweight title he won by defeating Ryan Garcia, while Teofimo is moving up in weight following his unanimous decision loss to Shakur Stevenson in January.<\/p>\n

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Ken Woods<\/strong> has been a senior author at Boxing News 24 since 2013, covering the game from every angle. With years of ringside reporting, he delivers fight news, results, and evaluation that cut through the noise. Ken\u2019s work consistently spotlights champions, contenders, and rising prospects, giving fans a pointy, knowledgeable view of the worldwide boxing scene.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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