Teofimo Lopez Wins Third Title After Eye Cut and Knockdown

When blood dripped into Teofimo Lopez's eye in the fifth round and his opponent's punches sent him reeling backward, the Brooklyn fighter faced a choice between crumbling and climbing back.

He chose to climb.

Lopez won the WBA welterweight title Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, earning a majority decision victory over champion Rolly Romero. Two judges scored the bout 116-112 and 115-113 for Lopez, while the third saw it even at 114-114.

The fight started smoothly for Lopez, who found success attacking Romero's body in the early rounds. But the fifth round brought disaster when Romero landed a crushing left to the head followed by a punishing combination that opened a cut over Lopez's right eye.

Instead of backing down, Lopez fired back. He threw more punches than ever before in his career, using his jab to control distance and repeatedly attacking Romero's midsection.

"He hit me with a shot and woke me up," Lopez said after the fight. "I was just buzzed, but I got right back up. That's the way I was built."

The momentum shifted in the sixth round when Romero inexplicably backed off despite his earlier success. Lopez pressed forward with body shots and relentless pressure, forcing Romero to spend much of the remaining rounds hopping away from the action.

By the championship rounds, Lopez was landing clean shots to both the head and body while Romero mostly missed on wild power swings. Lopez raised his hands in victory as the final bell rang.

Why This Inspires

Lopez's victory comes just two months after a lopsided loss to unbeaten champion Shakur Stevenson. Many fighters would have doubted themselves after such a defeat, especially when facing another crisis moment against Romero.

Instead, Lopez used the experience as fuel. He credited the tough opponents he faced earlier in his career for preparing him to weather Romero's storm and find a way to win.

The 26-year-old now holds titles in three different weight divisions. He's looking ahead to potential matchups with fellow champions Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney, but first he's taking time off to be with his family as he prepares to become a father.

"If you lose and you come back, you're a winner," Lopez said, summing up a philosophy that carried him through the toughest night of his recent career to championship glory.