“I said it time after time: ‘You might not believe it, but I believe in myself.’ And look at me now. I’ve got all the jewels. I’m not the king, I’m the emperor because I come to every other country and I take them out one by one.”
Lopez had initially won the belts 13 months ago in Las Vegas after beating Vasiliy Lomachenko.
His highly-anticipated defense was much delayed for numerous reasons, including having to pull out of a fight in June after contracting Covid-19.
But he eventually took to the ring against Kambosos, with the promise of producing a first-round knockout.
However, the American was the one who ended up on the canvas after an explosive first round, in which both fighters showed their power.
The pair exchanged big blows throughout the rest of the fight — with Kambosos having to survive being knocked down himself later on.
But by the end of the bout, it was the champion Lopez who looked the worse for it, with his left eye and his nose bleeding profusely.
It was the first loss of Lopez’s burgeoning boxing career, and a result that he was not pleased with afterwards.
“At the end of the day, I’m a true champion. I came out here, I did what I had to do, and I went out there and I did my best. … This is the takeover. We don’t stop; we keep coming.”
In what is a stacked lightweight division, Kambosos has already been called out by Devin Haney, who holds the WBC lightweight belt.
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