Teofimo Lopez said today that he’s looking forward to fighting Shakur Stevenson in 2026. He states that the paperwork is still being “tossed back and forth’ between them. Nothing has been signed yet, Lopez (22-1, 13 KOs) is hoping the deal will be done “soon enough.”
Assuming the fight does happen, Shakur (24-0, 11 KOs) will be freezing his WBC lightweight title to move up to 140 to challenge Teofimo for his WBO light welterweight title. It’s believed the fight could take place in January 2026 on DAZN PPV. It’s not a big enough one to be placed on Netflix. There aren’t enough casual boxing fans who are familiar with Stevenson and Lopez.
“We talk what we talk, but now it’s time to back up what we talk. Yes, we’re looking forward to fighting Shakur Stevenson in early 2026. I’m definitely looking and excited for it,” said Teofimo Lopez to Brian Custer’s social media handle on X when asked if he’ll be fighting Shakur Stevenson next year.
Shakur’s Strategic Move
People want the negotiations to be over with already, as Lopez and Shakur have been going back and forth for two months without an announcement. After Shakur got a nice payday of $7 million for his fight against William Zepeda on July 12th in Queens, New York, he’s making sure he doesn’t take a pay cut by hustling a fight against Teofimo.
If Shakur chose to defend his WBC lightweight title against his #1-ranked contender, Andy Cruz, he wouldn’t make as much, and he might lose. So, it’s understandable why Stevenson has pushed so hard for the Teofimo. It works for him in two ways—money and avoiding a possible loss to the Cuban Andy Cruz.
“Neither one of us has gotten to the point where we’ve signed on the dotted line. We’re still in negotiations. Our paperwork is being tossed back and forth. Soon enough, the fight fans around the world will see us having a fight deal,” said Lopez.
Keyshawn Waiting in Line
If Teofimo doesn’t get this fight made against Shakur, he’s going to be stuck with an unpleasant one against #1-ranked WBO 140-lb contender Keyshawn Davis. The World Boxing Organization recently moved Keyshawn to #1 after he petitioned for it after being stripped of his WBO lightweight title on June 6, 2025, after failing to make weight for his title defense against Edwin De Los Santos on June 7, 2025.
