Teofimo Lopez defeated Josh Taylor on Saturday night in a one-sided victory marred by more incompetent judging etched by so-called professionals.
“The Takeover” proved his metal in dominating the widely-though-of divisional top dog and taking the WBO super-lightweight title in the process.
However, Lopez conquered a second division and took a belt Taylor should never have possessed.
Taylor lost to Jack Catterall in a shocking decision that put a massive stain on boxing. And of the three ringside officials in New York, only one got anywhere near the rightful score at Madison Square Garden.
Teofimo Lopez vs Josh Taylor scorecards
What UK scorer Steve Gray and his counterpart Joe Pasquale were watching [115-113 Lopez] is anyone’s guess, as Lopez dominated Taylor for at least nine of the twelve rounds.
Benoit Roussel scored 117-111 to save the integrity of the fight. But boxing needs a new set of judges, as bad scoring happens nearly weekly.
The twelve-round unanimous decision occurred at The Theater at Madison Square Garden.
A former unified lightweight king, Lopez pushed his record to 19-1, with 13 knockouts. With the triumph, he captured the hollow WBO belt Taylor had no business holding. Catterall, the should-be champion, reacted with a Leonardo DiCaprio’ Gatsby’ meme as he moved closer to a shot at the new champion.
Taylor connected with straight left hands and counterpunches to the body in the opening two rounds. But by rounds three and four, the 32-year-old Scotsman began feeling the sting of Lopez’s power.
As a result, his offense became more tentative. The pace of the fight decelerated. This allowed Lopez to land his signature power shots.
By rounds five and six, Lopez took a commanding lead as a confused Taylor struggled to find his punching range.
Dominant
Lopez punctuated his victory in the final rounds with explosive bursts of offense, shades of the vintage ‘Teo’ who had dominated his adversaries as a lightweight.
The 25-year-old Brooklyn native had Taylor on wobbly legs more than once toward the final bell.
Taylor took this defeat far better than the first against Catterall to his credit. “The Tartan Tornado” was gracious about his loss, unlike when Catterall entirely and utterly beat him hands down in the UK.
“No excuses. It wasn’t my best. The better man won tonight. I’ve got no excuses,” said Taylor. “I fought to the best of my ability. He was better than me tonight.
“It is what it is. Congratulations to Teofimo. I thought it was a close fight. I’d love to do it again. I know I’m better than that.
Follow experienced boxing writer Phil Jay on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
