Teofimo Lopez became a three-division world champion when he overcame Rolando Romero last weekend to capture the WBA welterweight title, and well-regarded trainer, commentator and fight analyst Teddy Atlas has publicly declared his disapproval of the scoring in the contest.

Romero had not fought since winning the vacant belt against Ryan Garcia last May and thus stepped through the ropes off the back of 15 months of inactivity when tasked with Lopez in Las Vegas.

That ring rust may have proved decisive on the night, as Lopez claimed a majority-decision victory to become a world champion in a third weight class. Although most observers felt Lopez deserved a comfortable unanimous decision, Romero surprisingly believed he had done enough to retain his title.

On his YouTube channel, The Fight with Teddy Atlas, the former Mike Tyson coach dismissed any suggestion that Romero deserved the win, instead praising judge Tim Cheatham, who scored the bout 116-112 in favour of the challenger.

“When I think that something is wrong, I call it out, even to my detriment on my own network I say, ‘we did this wrong, we didn’t put a good fight on, we overhyped this guy or this judge was terrible,’. 

“I have often gone after Tim Cheatham, I have gone after him many times and, I think, rightfully so – and this time I am going to applaud him, I am going to lift him up, he got it right. He is my new idol!”

Continuing, Atlas then went on to declare that, if he were in charge, he would be having a stern word with judge Glenn Feldman, whose scorecard read as a 114-114 draw, believing that Feldman should have his licence taken away.

“I would call him [Feldman] in on Monday morning and say, ‘come into my office, we are going to watch the fight and you are going to explain [how this fight was a draw] to me, before I take your licence away, before I sit you down, before I suspend you,’.

“If you drive bad, if you crash your car, your licence gets taken away.”

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Lopez is now eyeing up a unification clash with WBC titleholder Ryan Garcia if he comes through Conor Benn unscathed in two weeks, but it remains to be seen whether ‘The Takeover’ will first be made to defend his title against supposed mandatory challenger, Jack Catterall.

As it relates to the NFL’s veteran pass rushers, the Vikings could fast be approaching a speak now or forever hold your peace moment.

Consider the update that arrives courtesy of national NFL insider Jordan Schultz: “Sources: 2x Pro Bowl OLB Haason Reddick has become the latest veteran pass-rusher drawing interest from teams after recent signings, including Von Miller to Dallas, Za’Darius Smith to Atlanta, and Derek Barnett to Cleveland. The 31-year-old Reddick has 61.5 career sacks and spent last season in Tampa Bay.”

Veteran Pass Rushers are Flying Off the Shelves

Teams can survive with a pair of imposing pass rushers. The Vikings are sitting in this position due to the ongoing employment of Andrew Van Ginkel and Dallas Turner, both of whom are ready for major workloads in 2026. Dropping down to a single option is when things get dicey.

In an ideal world, the Minnesota Vikings will boast at least three imposing edge rushers. Think back to those prime Mike Zimmer days when all of Everson Griffen, Brian Robison, and Danielle Hunter were creating a ruckus at the line of scrimmage.

Conversely, think to the 2023 season when Hunter was the last man standing for imposing pass rushers since Marcus Davenport succumbed to injury. Hunter feasted and D.J. Wonnum did his best, but the Vikings were at least a single pass rusher short.

Consider just recent NFL moves involving veteran pass rushers (credit to OTC for money info):

• Jadeveon Clowney <—> Houston Texans ($5.5M)
• Emmanuel Ogbah <—> Kansas City Chiefs ($1.3M)
• Marcus Davenport <—> Chicago Bears ($1.3M)
• Von Miller <—> Dallas Cowboys ($5.5M)
• Za’Darius Smith <—> Atlanta Falcons ($6M)
• Derek Barnett <—> Cleveland Browns (?)

In a general sense, the assassins for hire can be scooped up for roughly $5 or $6 million. In the NFL marketplace, the $5M range is middle class territory. Going for a lower-end option means paying a lower-end price, but Haason Reddick wouldn’t be among those players. He’d likely find himself above the Ogbah/Davenport range but below the Miller/Clowney/Smith range.

At his best, Haason Reddick was a second-team All Pro and a fourth-place finisher in the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year voting. He earned those distinctions in 2022 when he played for the Eagles by piling up 16 sacks, 26 quarterback hits, and 11 tackles for loss onto the stat sheet. Oh, and then there were his 5 forced fumbles, an elite total.

Since then, Reddick hasn’t been so formidable. In Tampa Bay in 2025, Mr. Reddick had just 2.5 sacks within his thirteen games. He also had 6 quarterback hits and 6 tackles for loss. Minnesota’s great task involves assessing whether he’s cooked or whether there’s still some gas left in the tank.

Last season, Reddick commanded close to $13.5 million, a number he won’t be seeing in 2026.

As things stand, the Vikings appear happy to lean on off-ball linebacker Eric Wilson to be the EDGE3. At training camp last week, Wilson told me that his experience playing along the edge goes back to high school. The veteran feels confident in his ability to keep doing so for the Vikings’ defense again in 2026.

Otherwise, the names to know are Ty Ingram-Dawkins, Jake Golday, and then the cluster of UDFA depth guys (Bo Richer, Tyler Batty, Chaz Chambliss, Cam’Ron Stewart).

Reddick stands at 6’1″ and weighs 240 pounds, meaning he’s pretty small for the position. The pass rusher was chosen at No. 13 overall in the 2017 NFL Draft and has since played for the Arizona Cardinals, Carolina Panthers, Philadelphia Eagles, New York Jets, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Before long, a team is going to bite, signing Reddick with the hope of seeing him drink from the fountain of youth as he sends passers into orbit.

Haason Reddick will turn 32 in September.

Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.

The Nigerian Premier Football League (NPFL) is set to earn $7.5 million (about ₦10.5 billion) from a new three-year sponsorship deal with Euromatch Group.

NPFL Chairman Gbenga Elegbeleye announced the deal in Abuja during the unveiling of Euromatch as the league’s new sponsor.

Elegbeleye said the partnership is worth $2.5 million per season, bringing the total value to $7.5 million over three years.

He said the deal shows the progress made by the NPFL in recent years, adding that the league has moved beyond the challenge of getting fans into stadiums.

According to him, the focus is now on managing the growing number of supporters attending NPFL matches and improving their match-day experience.

Presidential Special Adviser on Communication, Sunday Dare, welcomed the deal, saying efforts to improve Nigerian football over the years are beginning to produce positive results.

Group Chairman of Euromatch Group, Sacli Semih, praised the talent available in Nigeria and promised that the company would work to increase the visibility and commercial value of the NPFL.

NFF President Ibrahim Gusau also commended Euromatch for investing in the Nigerian league. He urged the NPFL to create a strategy that would encourage former Nigerian internationals to attend league matches regularly and support the development of domestic football.

The unveiling ceremony was attended by several football stakeholders, including former Super Eagles stars Austin Eguavoen, Daniel Amokachi, Samson Siasia, Brown Ideye and Davidson Owumi.

Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lanre Onilu, was also present at the event.

Ryan Garcia has revealed which welterweight legend he would back to come out on top against all others.

Garcia is now a welterweight star in his own right, after winning the WBC welterweight title back in February with a unanimous decision victory over Mario Barrios.

He is set to make the first defence of that title on September 12 when he takes on Conor Benn at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, with a victory there potentially leading to unification clashes with the likes of Teofimo Lopez, Liam Paro and former foe Devin Haney.

Before Garcia collides with Benn, he was recently tasked with pitting together some past welterweight icons in fantasy match-ups against one another whilst speaking to Daily Mail Boxing.

Manny Pacquiao, Roberto Duran, Errol Spence Jr, Pernell Whittaker, Tommy Hearns, Terence Crawford, Floyd Mayweather, Sugar Ray Leonard, and Sugar Ray Robinson were all of the fighters mentioned, and in the end it was Leonard that Garcia had as the last man standing.

Leonard is viewed as being one of the greatest boxers of all time, and it wasn’t just welterweight where he was successful, having become a five-division world champion after also reigning from light middleweight to light heavyweight.

He was a member of the iconic ‘Four Kings’ with fellow greats Duran, Hearns and Marvin Hagler, with Leonard acting as the only member of that illustrious group to defeat the others.

Leonard’s final record stood at 36 wins from his 40 professional fights, with 25 of those victories coming by knockout.

The Undisputed WWE Championship picture has become far more complicated than it already was. CM Punk entered SummerSlam as champion. Meanwhile, Kevin Owens returned from a potentially career-ending injury and won the Fatal 4-Way No. 1 Contender’s Match involving Sami Zayn, Gunther, and Finn Balor.

Owens then challenged Punk in Toronto. However, the rivalry took an unexpected turn when Zayn inserted himself into their title match. He attacked the champion and attempted to help KO win the championship. The challenger refused to use the title as a weapon, prompting Sami to blast his former friend with the gold.

The Second City Saint subsequently defeated Kevin Owens before Sami Zayn attacked both men and made it clear that he believed CM Punk had stolen the championship from him. WWE has therefore created a three-way story in which all three superstars have legitimate reasons to fight.

That said, in this article, we look at four possible ways the Punk-Owens-Zayn triangle could eventually end.

#4. CM Punk vs. Sami Zayn

The simplest conclusion would be a singles feud between CM Punk and Sami Zayn. Zayn has already established that his issue with Punk is deeply personal, particularly after claiming that The Best in the World took away something that belonged to him.

CM Punk could respond by refusing to let Zayn dictate the direction of his title reign. That would give WWE a straightforward championship program while allowing Kevin Owens to move elsewhere temporarily.

The feud could also give Sami an opportunity to prove that his recent aggression was not a temporary emotional outburst. A Punk-Zayn program would also have plenty of emotional material. Both men are excellent talkers. Thus, their contrasting personalities could make their confrontations compelling.

#3. Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn

Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn have one of WWE’s most established personal histories. So their friendship turning into another bitter rivalry would be easy to understand.

Owens already had reason to be furious after Zayn cost him the championship in Toronto. More importantly, KO initially refused to use the title as a weapon against CM Punk, only for Sami to attack him anyway. That moment could convince Kevin that Sami has crossed a line.

WWE could build toward a singles match where the championship is not involved at all. Instead, the story would focus on pride, betrayal, and their complicated history.

This option could also protect Punk from being overexposed. While Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn settle their differences, The Second City Saint could defend the Undisputed Championship against another challenger before eventually returning to the triangle.

#2. Triple Threat Match

The most obvious destination is a Triple Threat Match for the Undisputed WWE Championship.

CM Punk has already beaten Kevin Owens. However, the victory was influenced by Sami Zayn’s interference. Owens can therefore argue that he deserves another opportunity without simply demanding the same singles rematch. Meanwhile, Zayn can claim that his actions prove he belongs in the title picture.

If that happens, WWE could turn those arguments into a championship match. Punk would be caught between two challengers who know him differently. Meanwhile, Owens and Zayn would have their own unfinished business.

A Triple Threat would also allow Triple H to continue all three stories simultaneously. CM Punk could retain by defeating one challenger. Meanwhile, the other would avoid taking a direct loss. Alternatively, either Owens or Zayn could win the championship without requiring Punk to lose credibility.

#1. Punk and Owens temporarily unite against Sami

The most intriguing ending may involve CM Punk and Kevin Owens putting their differences aside long enough to deal with Sami Zayn.

That alliance would be interesting because Owens and Punk have already shown that they are capable of intense hostility. Their recent title match was physical and personal. Yet Sami’s attack gave both men a common enemy.

The Second City Saint and Kevin Owens could agree that Zayn has become too dangerous to ignore. They might temporarily work together in a tag team match or even combine forces against him in a confrontation.

However, the alliance should not last forever. Once Sami Zayn is dealt with, Punk and Owens could immediately return to their rivalry, creating another chapter in their championship feud.

This route could give all three superstars something meaningful. Zayn would become the antagonist who temporarily brings two rivals together, Owens would gain another reason to pursue Punk, and the champion would remain at the center of the story.