2026 kicks off with a big bang. After lurking in the shadows for a long time, testing everyone’s patience, the fight between two of modern boxing’s biggest names gets the green flag. Though details regarding the venue and card still remain unavailable, Teofimo Lopez and Shakur Stevenson are now set to headline a DAZN-streamed event on January 31.

Letting their eagerness get the better of them, the two champions decided to hype the superfight in their signature style. Teofimo Lopez took one step beyond and called out undisputed super middleweight champion Terence Crawford. The two had been at loggerheads in the past, sparking a dormant rivalry. However, with Crawford setting his sights on the Canelo fight, nothing realistically came of it. Now that Lopez has a fight lined up against Crawford’s close friend and protege, Shakur Stevenson, he felt it was time to sound the warning bugle again. Unsurprisingly, he received a humorous response from the man whose challenge he seems to be overlooking.

Teofimo Lopez aims at Crawford, but the joke is on him

Shakur Stevenson burst into laughter when he came across Lopez’s interview with The Ring magazine. Letting the cat out of the bag, Lopez speculated – if Crawford could move up two or three weight classes to fight Canelo, then what stops him from following in his footsteps and challenging him?

“I would love to face him right after; he’s the guy, he’s the man of boxing. And I think, if he could go up three weight divisions to fight Canelo Alvarez, why can’t Teofimo Lopez go up two weight classes or three to face Terence Crawford?” the light welterweight champion stated.

But his words immediately ended up drawing a cheeky dig from the lightweight champion, who is incidentally climbing a division to claim a championship in a fourth weight class. “I can’t wait, I swear 😂😂😂,” Stevenson wrote.

To be fair, this is not the first time Teofimo Lopez has called out Terence Crawford.

Go after Crawford; just don’t sleep on Shakur Stevenson

Early last year, in the lead-up to his first title defense against Jamaine Ortiz, Lopez expressed interest in a matchup against Crawford. A few months earlier, the Nebraskan had finished Errol Spence Jr. to claim the undisputed welterweight title. Lopez and Crawford later found themselves involved in a much-publicized back-and-forth. More often than not, it transcended the boundaries of social media and led to personal confrontations.

Dig deeper, and one may realize Teofimo Lopez might be trying to up the ante.

He’s doing so after the heavy scrutiny he faced over his fights against Jamaine Ortiz and Steve Claggett. A win over Arnold Barboza Jr. helped allay some of the apprehensions about his form, but he made it clear – he wants more.

To that extent, he has already lined up a fight against an established star like Shakur Stevenson.

But then one is forced to think: Is Teofimo Lopez taking Stevenson’s challenge lightly? If he is, he’s doing so at his own peril. Stevenson is one of those fighters who backs his words with action. His emphatic win over William Zepeda more than confirms it.

Many already view Stevenson as the clear favorite to win the fight. So it’s better for Lopez to stay focused on the uphill task ahead. Only once he steers clear of Stevenson should he think about his next fight. A matchup against someone like Terence Crawford can wait for now.

Do you think Crawford might accept Lopez’s challenge if he manages to defeat Stevenson?