Teofimo Lopez is once again at the centre of controversy.
Lopez is the reigning WBO super-lightweight champion and regarded as one of the top fighters in the world, but has been involved in a number of spats outside the ring with his rivals that, for many fans, taints his reputation.
His latest has come this week, and involves the upcoming WBO lightweight title fight between Denys Berinchyk and Keyshawn Davis in New York on Friday.
On Wednesday, Davis took to social media to state that he received a box of bananas and watermelon to his hotel room in a racist incident, claiming that it came from Berinchyk’s team, something that the defending champion strongly denies.
It led to a heated press conference between the two men, with the fighters having to be pulled apart from the face-off and Davis visibly annoyed at what transpired.
Lopez reacted to the press conference on social media with a new video, laughing at the press conference whilst eating a banana with the caption ‘making boxing great again.’
It is safe to say that boxing fans didn’t take too kindly to Lopez’s response to the matter, with several fans hitting back at Teofimo and even guessing that he was the man behind the sick stunt.
One fan posted: “This is disgraceful. F***ing Racist” – while another replied with: “Wow you’re a f***ing loser.”
Lopez’s next fight is yet to be confirmed, with a planned March clash against Subriel Matias falling through. He may instead look to unify with IBF 140 pound champion Richardson Hitchins but has ben ordered to defend against the winner of this weekend’s clash between Jack Catterall and Arnold Barboza Jr.
Lopez has also been linked to a move up in weight for a bout against IBF welterweight champion Jaron Ennis in the future, with several big names from the boxing world making predictions.
