By Dan Ambrose: Regis Prograis believes Teofimo Lopez isn’t “mentally stable” after watching his behavior last Saturday night in his questionable 10 round split decision win over Sandor Martin. Prograis says Teofimo is “crumbling” mentally.
Besides the mental stability issues, WBC light welterweight champion Prograis believes that Teofimo (18-1, 13 KOs) is “too little” for the 140-lb division and lacks the power to beat the killers in the division.
Isn’t sure whether Teofimo can still make 135, but he knows from watching him he’s not going to beat the top fighters in the 140-lb division.
If Teofimo returns to the lightweight division, with his size & power for that weight class, he can immediately be a factor, as long as he’s not weight-drained. But at light welterweight, he’s not going anywhere, according to Prograis.
Regis’ advice to save Teofimo’s career
- Dump training team
- Return to 135-lb division
- Work on power
- Learn to box – Don’t rely on power
- Be happy outside of the ring
Prograis: Teofimo is too little for 140
“I never thought that. I don’t think Teo can be in the top 140s,” said Regis Prograis to Fighthype when asked if Teofimo Lopez’s power has carried up from the 135-lb division to 140.
“I try to hurt people. That’s what I do. I’m trying to hurt you. I’m trying to destroy you. I’ll hurt Teo; that’s it. I’ll definitely will hurt him,” said Prograis.
“So when you talk about somebody like Teo, I think he’s too little. Yeah, he’s fast and all that stuff. he’s quick, but for me, that’s all smoke & mirrors. That ain’t won’t do nothing to me.
“That absolutely won’t do nothing to me at all. Yeah, I really think I’ll hurt him [Teofimo]. I think I hurt anybody. I’ve got one loss [to Josh Taylor].
“I just don’t see him [Teofimo] beating [top fighters at 140]. Listen, he was explosive, and he was good at 135. He’s got the skills, he’s fast, he’s explosive, and he’s marketable.
“He had all the skills at 135, but at 140, those five pounds really do make a difference. It’s crazy. People think five pounds ain’t nothing, but five pounds in boxing, that’s five pounds of muscle.
“That’s five pounds of strength on these different guys. I don’t feel like he [Teofimo] can beat any of the top 140s. I don’t see it. I can’t see him beating any of the top guys at 140. I think the power is not there.
“Of course, the speed is there, but the power is not there. That chin, bro. You got to think, he got dropped by Kambosos, and Kambosos is a little guy. If you’re talking about somebody like me.
“Listen, he [Teofimo] got dropped by Kambosos; he got dropped by this dude [Sandor Martin]. I seen Teo get dropped in sparring before. This dude is coming up to this division.
“Besides myself, there’s a lot of killers at 140. I know I’m a killer, and you got [Jose] Zepeda. You got people like Jack Catterall up there. They got a bunch of people that are killers.
“Yeah, they got a lot of killers at 140, and I don’t think he can hang. He got caught up with his own hype, and that’s what’s wrong with him. He got caught up in his own hype, and his dad got caught up. He needs to get rid of his dad.
Lopez not Mentally stable” says Regis
“He’s got a lot of stuff going on personally, and he does have a lot of skills. In boxing, a happy fighter is the best fighter. You always have to be happy. If you’ve got a lot of stuff going on in your personal life, you’re not going to be happy. That will affect you in the ring.
“He needs to change his team up. Mentally, he’s not stable. I saw the post [on Twitter] right after the fight. He went right back in the gym and started doing exercises and stuff like that.
“If I look at that, it means that mentally, he’s not stable because he’s trying to prove to himself something. He’s doing that because he wanted to prove to people, ‘I really won. I’m doing this.’ No, bro, you putting that video out there that you’re back in the gym training. That means you’re not. Mentally, you’re not stable.
“If the power is not there at 140, you can do different things to work on your power. He still has skills. I give him that. If the powers not there, you can still outbox these guys.
“Maybe he could make 135. Maybe he can’t. I don’t know. I’m not his body. Mentally, he’s crumbling. You can just tell that mentally, he’s crumbling. He’s got a lot of bull s**t going on around him.
“It could be possible,” said Prograis when asked if George Kambosos Jr ‘ruined’ Teofimo with his win over him in 2021. “I’m not going to say it is. I’m not going to say it’s the truth.
“That’s definitely a possibility. When you get that hyped stuff. When you have a huge ego, and you get into your head, all that hype stuff, you believe all that, and his dad. His daddy believes all that.
“It seems like his dad is living through his son, and that’s never good when your dad is living through you. They put so much pressure on you, and you feel like you’re unbeatable. Then you got a dude like Kambosos. He [Teofimo] was supposed to run through Kambosos.
“I thought he was going to run through Kambosos. When you get someone like Kambosos that puts you on your a** and cuts you up and give you a hard fight like that, it’ll ruin you.
“You question yourself. ‘Dan, do I?’ He said it, ‘Damn, do I still have it?’ He said that in the ring. ‘Damn, do I even still have it?’ Yeah, mentally, he’s not there. He needs to change everything up.
“I’m definitely different,” said Prograis about how his loss to Josh Taylor in 2019 didn’t affect him mentally in the same way Teofimo’s defeat against Kambosos did.
“I don’t let things affect me. I’m very happy. It was alright because my personal life was always alright. Boxing is not who I am. It doesn’t define me. Yeah, I get paid a lot in boxing. I’m a good fighter, but that’s not the person who I am.
“I just think he [Teofimo] needs a change [of trainer]. If your daddy is living through you, you can’t do that. With Teo, I think he needs to get rid of his dad. His dad, for me, is f***king him up. He needs to get with another trainer.
“It’s hard when you have family [training you]. It’s extra hard. How do I fire my dad? This is my dad. How do I fire my dad? That’s tough. I’m sure Teo gets a good little check. So he’s paying his dad. So his dad is relying on his money now.
“So, how do you do that? That’s a tough situation. I wouldn’t do it. But if you want to get to the next level, that’s what’s needed.
“When I fight people, I try to hurt them. I don’t fight to hurt my opponent for the long run, like chronically. I don’t want to hurt my opponent chronically. But when I fight, I try to mess people up, I really do.
“I try to beat your a**. When I fight, I’m not looking for going the distance and going 12 rounds. I could fight 12 hard rounds, but when I fight someone 12 hard rounds, I’m going to do some damage. I just know that. I’m going to damage you.
“I still feel I won that fight, but one loss on my record. You saw his face [after the fight]. You saw how Josh Taylor’s eye looked like. His s**t was hanging out. He had this s**t on his eye,” said Prograis.