Teofimo Lopez hits the canvas after a powerful shot detonated on his chin.
Throughout his career to date, ‘The Takeover’ has proven himself as one of the most naturally gifted fighters in boxing.
Lopez secured a devastating victory over Richard Commey to secure his first world title, before claiming all the belts against Vasiliy Lomachenko. Then, following a loss to George Kambosos Jr, he stepped from lightweight to super lightweight to beat Josh Taylor to become a two-division champion.
However, while he’s often the hammer, in one particular sparring session, it looked like he was the nail.
WOW: Who is Teofimo Lopez? Meet the two-weight world champion defying expectations
Teofimo Lopez dropped in sparring by Janelson Figueroa Bocachica
In 2019, a video spread around the internet of Teofimo Lopez sparring Janelso Figueroa Bocachica, who was 14-0 at the time.
During the clip, the enthusiastic future world champion charges in before getting a stark reminder of what can happen if you’re too overaggressive inside the boxing ring.
Timing a right hand to perfection, Figueroa sent Lopez hurtling towards the canvas.
The fighter who landed the knockdown later spoke about the incident in an interview with Sky Sports, claiming: “The Teofimo sparring video happened after two rounds of sparring with a 200lb teammate he had that I stopped in two rounds, and a full day of working out.
“He called me out due to what I did to his teammate, and I came back and did what the world seen.
“I know Teo personally, and after the knockout, Teo wants nothing to do with me. He can say what he wants, but he doesn’t want to see me again.
“I don’t consider it (the knockdown) to mean anything other than that my power is there and that his punches do not faze me.
“He’s a kid to me and always will be, even though he is older than me.”
Teofimo Lopez left questioning his ability after close shave with defeat
Later tonight, Lopez will return to action against Arnold Barboza Jr at Times Square in New York, USA.
The 27-year-old knows he can’t take his eye off the ball, as his opponent presents an incredibly tough challenge.
The American has previously been given rude awakenings when he’s underestimated opponents.
After one particularly poor performance, Lopez was left asking his team, ‘Do I still got it’?.