Rolando “Rolly” Romero isn’t holding back one bit, calling Saturday’s WBA welterweight world title loss to Teofimo Lopez a straight-up “robbery.” Dude lost his belt via majority decision at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, and he’s already hell-bent on a rematch, claiming the whole thing was “all political.”
That Scorecard Had Everyone Scratching Their Heads
The final scores really tell you everything you need to know about the drama. Judge Glenn Feldman had it a draw, 114-114, which honestly, makes Romero’s “robbery” claims hit a little harder for some folks. But then Tim Cheatham and Max DeLuca came in with 116-112 and 115-113 for Lopez, giving him the majority decision and the title. Romero was heated, saying he “got hit with two punches the whole fight that barely grazed me” and that he “was never in any trouble.” When he heard that 114-114 score, he said he *knew* it was a robbery. His best moment? That fifth round, where he legit hurt Lopez and opened a significant cut on his face. But man, he couldn’t keep that pressure up, totally let Lopez off the hook and gave away all that momentum in the rounds that followed.
The Numbers Don’t Lie, But Rolly’s Still Raging
Compubox data tells a different story about Romero’s output. Lopez out-landed him in all but one of the rounds after that fifth, and by the end, Lopez had connected on 124 shots from 530 thrown, hitting at 23.4% accuracy. Romero, on the other hand, only landed 73 punches from 352 thrown, for a 20.7% accuracy. Lopez fired back at Romero’s claims, saying, “I was hitting him back, plain and simple.” He specifically pointed to body shots, “tagging that body,” and targeting arms and stomach to slow Romero down, which he says won him the fight. Romero, still fuming, kept pointing to his face, asking, “I was hit with, what? Two clean shots the whole fight? If that’s enough to beat the champion, it’s enough to beat the champion.” He even complained about not getting a “fair shake” for his “awkward”, “power puncher” style. He believes he “clearly outboxed the dude who is supposed to be one of the best. An Olympian. I cut him. Hurt him multiple times. I deserve a rematch.”
A rematch isn’t contractually mandated, so Lopez would have to agree, which seems pretty unlikely right now. Lopez is looking ahead, fresh off a new DAZN deal, eyeing his remaining three fights with the broadcaster to build his path toward undisputed champion status. He’s been close before, getting all but one major lightweight title back in 2020 when he beat Vasiliy Lomachenko. Now, at 147 pounds, he’s the WBA king, and he’s got WBC champ Ryan Garcia, WBO champ Devin Haney, and IBF titleholder Liam Paro in his sights. He wants to pick them off one by one, leaving Romero screaming into the void for a second chance.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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