Boxers are cocky—that’s not a secret, but Teofimo Lopez may have taken his confidence in himself a bit too far this time. You see, recently, the WBO super lightweight champion absolutely refused to accept that Devin Haney and Shakur Stevenson could be considered on the same level as him. 

Back in April, ‘The Dream’ had taken a serious beating from Ryan Garcia, being dropped four times before losing the fight via a majority decision. Even though the loss was overturned to a no-contest after performance-enhancing drug, Ostarine, was found in Garcia’s system, Haney’s reputation never recovered. 

On the other hand, Shakur Stevenson has faced relentless criticism since his performance against Edwin De Los Santos in November last year. Due to his slow performance and lack of action, most people have labeled him boring. This didn’t improve this year either when Stevenson took on Artem Harutyunyan, leading to more of the usual. 

Regardless, Lopez recently appeared on the ‘It Is What It Is’ podcast, where he alleged Gervonta Davis was fighting 130-pound champion Lamont Roach Jr. only because it would make him look good. Hearing this, the host of the show asked Lopez whether he considered himself, Shakur Stevenson, and Devin Haney to be the best fighters around his weight class. 

This led to Lopez boldly claiming, “Devin Haney & Shakur Stevenson shouldn’t even be mentioned [as A-class fighters].” When asked to justify his answer, Lopez simply claimed, “They [are] not good.” It’s worth mentioning that out of the three fighters, ‘The Takeover’ is the only one with red on his record.

Not to forget, while Shakur’s resume isn’t as decorated as Lopez’s, Haney has not only fought more boxers—he has also defeated George Kambosos Jr. twice, who gave Lopez his only career loss. On top of that, Haney has also defeated Vasyl Lomachenko, even if people dispute the results of that fight. 

Regardless, Lopez elaborated on his claims, “One puts you [viewers] to sleep while the other one can’t take a hit.” While Lopez doesn’t feel Stevenson and Haney are on his level, it would be interesting to see what others think. 

Teofimo Lopez, Shakur Stevenson, and Devin Haney: Where do they stand? 

Ring Magazine Rankings, which actively adjusts its list based on performances, would be a good source to get an idea of where the Ring thinks these boxers stand. Starting with Teofimo Lopez, the WBO champion is currently ranked as the champion in the super lightweight division, ahead of Devin Haney, who is in the first spot. 

‘The Takeover’ does have the right to claim he is the best in the division. However, what about Stevenson? Where is he? First of all, Stevenson is currently in the lightweight division, whose championship spot is vacant. Stevenson occupies the 4th spot, after Gervonta Davis in the first, Vasyl Lomachenko in the second, and William Zepeda in the third. 

That said, despite what the rankings say, the only way to find the best boxer among the trio is through fights. However, when these three may face each other is anyone’s guess. Until then, why don’t you tell us who you think is the best?