Teofimo Lopez redeemed himself Saturday night in the same venue where his career came apart 18 months earlier.
The former unified lightweight champion clearly beat previously unbeaten Josh Taylor and won a 12-round unanimous decision to take the WBO junior welterweight title in a main event ESPN televised from The Theater at Madison Square Garden. Judges Steve Gray (115-113) and Joe Pasquale (115-113) had it closer than the action appeared to warrant, but Benoit Roussel scored nine rounds for Lopez, who won 117-111 on his card.
Lopez’s superior hand speed, intelligence, assortment of punches and athleticism made it difficult for Scotland’s Taylor to mount a sustained attack and enabled Lopez to pick apart the former undisputed 140-pound champion at times, especially during the 11th and 12th rounds. The 25-year-old Lopez looked nothing like the fighter who struggled with another southpaw, Spain’s Sandor Martin, whom Lopez barely beat by split decision in his last fight, a 10-rounder December 10 at Madison Square Garden.
Lopez (19-1, 13 KOs) won the WBO 140-pound championship from Taylor (19-1, 13 KOs), who relinquished his IBF, WBA and WBC crowns in 2022 because he wasn’t interested in making mandatory defenses in lower-profile fights. The Brooklyn-born Lopez also became a two-weight world champion in the same arena were Australian underdog George Kambosos Jr. upset him by split decision to win the IBF, WBA, WBC franchise and WBO lightweight titles in November 2021.
“It’s been a long time, a long time coming,” Lopez told ESPN’s Bernardo Osuna in the ring. “We just beat the number one-ranked guy, number one champion, lineal world champion, Josh Taylor, former undisputed world champion. Two-time undisputed world champion, Teofimo Lopez.”