Teofimo Lopez said he had no choice but to slap Arnold Barboza Jr. during yesterday’s press conference after he knocked his cowboy hat off his head during their face-off in Los Angeles. The WBO light welterweight champion Teofimo (21-1, 13 KOs) slapped Barboza Jr. (32-0, 11 KOs) hard with a left hand, causing a brief scuffle below the stage.
Barboza Jr. had to be held back from rushing at Teofimo to throw blows. He looked furious. However, it was his own fault for causing this incident by knocking Lopez’s hat off his head. It’s unclear what he said to Arnold to get him angry enough to knock his hat off, but it could be the frustration of waiting three years for this opportunity to fight him.
“All Rights”
“It’s by law. You don’t touch nobody. He touched my hat and I got all rights,” said Teofimo Lopez to the media, explaining why he slapped Arnold Barboza Jr. during their face off yesterday in Los Angeles.
During the press conference, the two fighters got into a back and forth trash-talking, using expletives and basically taking over everything. Brooklyn, New York native, Teofimo is his element, slipping into his playground name-calling and he seemed to be really enjoying himself. For him, it was like a flashback to his younger days in Brooklyn, name-calling people.
What’s going to be interesting is how the other press conferences and face offs are done between Teo and Barboza Jr. Will they be able to do this without attacking each other?
Last Updated on 03/11/2025
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