Rolly Romero dropped his WBA welterweight title to Teofimo Lopez on Saturday night in Las Vegas, but don’t tell Romero he actually lost that fight. Lopez took the belt by majority decision at T-Mobile Arena on August 22, 2026, and Romero is already demanding a rematch, claiming he won the bout.
The Scorecard Everyone Saw (Except One)
Look, the official scorecards from Vegas paint a pretty clear picture for anyone watching. Two judges scored the fight for Lopez, 115-113 and 116-112. That’s a majority decision, folks. The kicker? One judge bafflingly called it a 114-114 draw, and that’s the one Romero is hanging his hat on. He met with the media after the fight and made it crystal clear: he believes he won and he’s not trying to hear anyone else’s argument. He even told Ring Magazine the result was “clear as day” for him!
Romero is clinging to that one 114-114 scorecard, calling it proof he can compete with Lopez. He also points to hurting and cutting Lopez over the right eye in the fifth round, almost getting a knockdown there, and claims he was never in trouble across the 12 rounds. And yeah, he wasn’t ever really wobbled, that’s true. He’s even arguing he never gets a fair shake from the judges, which is debatable considering he won a unanimous decision over Ryan Garcia just last year in 2025.
The Cold, Hard Punch Count Romero Is Ignoring
But did Romero watch the same fight the rest of us did? Because the punch stats are screaming a different story, and two other licensed judges agreed with it. Lopez landed a total of 124 punches compared to Romero’s measly 73. Yeah, you read that right: a 51-punch difference! That’s a massive disparity that’s just tough to argue against. And Lopez piled up 62 power punches too. Romero was super dismissive of Lopez’s body shots after the fight, but guess what? Those punches absolutely count, no matter what he says, and they rack up points.
Aside from that fifth round where he cut Lopez, it’s really tough to point to another clear round Romero won. This win means Lopez now has a third divisional world title, a pretty big bounce back after Shakur Stevenson beat him in January 2026. Romero, on the other hand, lost his WBA welterweight title without a single defense, a belt he snagged from Ryan Garcia in 2025.
What’s Next for the Title?
So, with Romero screaming for a rematch based on a single sympathetic scorecard and his own conviction, versus those cold, hard numbers and two other judges, what happens next? It’s gonna be wild to see if the boxing world actually gives Romero another shot at Lopez after a performance that, statistically, looks like a pretty clear loss. Don’t blink, this story isn’t over yet.
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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