Teofimo Lopez - Steve Claggett recap

Steve Claggett was looking to fight his fight and do what he does best as a pressure fighter, and he did just that. While Claggett didn’t have his hand held high after the fight, he can certainly hold his head high.

Saturday night at the James L. Knight Centre in Miami, Florida, WBO junior welterweight champion Teofimo “The Takeover” Lopez (21-1, 13 KO’s) scored a UD 12 over Calgary, Canada’s Steve “The Dragon” Claggett (38-8-2, 26 KO’s).

To say Claggett is a pressure fighter would be an understatement of epic proportions. And, from 1st bell until last, he brought all that and more. Claggett works off a non-stop offense of volume punching and that is exactly what he bought to Lopez. As for Lopez, he looked to stay in the pocket and counter with hard body shots and crisp uppercuts. 

While Lopez won the fight 11-1 in rounds, he didn’t come close to stopping the tenacious Claggett with final scores reading 120-108, 120-108, 119-109.

While many had written off Claggett before the fight as an easy mark for the talented Lopez, he was anything but that, despite the lopsided scores.

Claggett was facing a fighter considered one of the most talented in boxing. After the fight, Lopez was calling out all the top names like Terence “Bud” Crawford and Isaac “Pit Bull” Cruz. So, it was no small victory that Claggett had just gone the distance with Lopez.

Claggett was on Lopez all night and the scores didn’t reflect the reality of the pressure and punching that Claggett brought. And, judging by Lopez’s face after the fight, Claggett landed his fair share of leather.

In a post-fight interview, it was clear that Claggett had certainly earned the respect of Lopez.

“He’s a tough fighter, I don’t think anybody should overlook him”, said Lopez. “Look what we gave the fans out here”, he said to the cheers of the South Florida crowd.

As for dealing with the amount of pressure put on him by Claggett, and the number of punches he was forced to throw, the pace of the bout was not lost on Lopez.

“Am I in the 500 (punches) club like Claggett”, he said with a chuckle.    

Claggett was praised after the fight by the ESPN ringside crew for an incredible chin, conditioning, and toughness. However, he didn’t come here just to fight Lopez, he came to beat him. So, understandably, the well-spoken, refreshingly polite, and humble Claggett was disappointed.

“I could have done more”, said Claggett, “but I thought I did more than what they gave me”, he said. “But the game is not easy and I’ll be back, I’ve still got more to show. It was my first world title shot”.

While Claggett certainly earned the respect of Lopez, and fight fans, he is sure that the best is yet to come.

“It’s been a long, hard road but I have perseverance. I’ll keep going. It (the fight) was OK, but I’ve got more than I showed. I’ve got more ability than I showed. I have a lot more fight in me and I’ll be back”.