WBO super lightweight champion Teofimo Lopez may not be the biggest fan of Gervonta Davis. But even ‘The Takeover’ can’t ignore how unfairly ‘Tank’ is being treated by the media. While the two have traded plenty of jabs on social media and in interviews, Lopez appears to have put their rivalry aside to show support for the WBA lightweight champion during this difficult time.

The root of the ‘unfair treatment’ stems from Davis’ clash against WBA super featherweight champion Lamont Roach Jr. on March 1 in New York. What was supposed to be a routine title defense turned out to be the most controversial fight of his career. Defying the odds, ‘The Reaper’ pushed Davis to his limits, ultimately forcing a majority decision draw. 

However, what really seems to have Gervonta Davis at odds with critics is the extensively covered no-knockdown ruling in the ninth round. After Roach Jr. landed a couple of blows, Davis surprisingly took a knee, just to run back to his corner to get his face wiped by trainer Calvin Ford. Referee Steve Willis had started a mandatory 10-count but stopped and let the incident slide with a warning. 

The resulting controversy sparked a huge uproar, as scoring the knee incident as a knockdown would have given Roach Jr. the win on the judges’ scorecards. Davis later claimed grease from his hair trickled down to his eyes, impairing his vision. The Baltimore native has since been in the headlines, with critics holding Tank accountable for the fiasco.

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So, while appearing on The PorterWay Podcast recently, Teofimo Lopez used this to warn young fighters that the media is nobody’s friend. “To all you young fighters, look at the amount of love they were giving and sharing to Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis prior to the fight,” Lopez said during the podcast. “Look at what all the reporters were doing prior to the fight.” 

“Look how they were all laughing at all his jokes prior to his fight against Lamont Roach. After the fight, look how many were waiting, waiting to down this man, down him,” he continued. Lopez explained he has his own beef with the 30-year-old, but “that’s because I wanna fight him. That’s me. I can say that.” He also added, “They don’t care about us. They won’t ever care about us. When you winning, they gonna be there, but they waiting for any moment to slip up. Even a draw, look how much hate he got out of it.”

The 27-year-old might be defending Davis right now, but he has never shied away from tearing down the Baltimore native’s accomplishments in the past.

Teofimo Lopez questions Gervonta Davis’ knockout record 

Back in January, Teofimo Lopez questioned the legitimacy of Gervonta Davis’ impressive knockout record, suggesting that ‘Tank’ has yet to face elite opposition. Davis was boasting an unbeaten 30-0 record with 28 knockouts before the Roach fight and was known for his explosive power. However, Lopez believed the record was misleading. “I think a lot of people just focus on the knockouts that he does but against who?” Lopez said. “They’re not seasoned fighters.”

The former undisputed lightweight champion added, “He’s never faced a fighter like me, never. At all. Never.” And it wasn’t just Lopez who criticized Davis for choosing subpar opponents. Fellow rival Shakur Stevenson questioned his competition level as well. Stevenson accused Davis of picking “less talented fighters,” adding, “Until he fights an elite-level fighter, I don’t want to hear nothing from him.”

That said, it appears Teofimo Lopez has decided to support Gervonta Davis as he prepares for a potential rematch with Lamont Roach Jr. in June. But do you think the criticism towards Davis because of the knee incident was blown out of proportion?