Teofimo Lopez has recalled the time a sparring partner pulled a knife out on him
Teofimo Lopez shared a crazy sparring session story of another boxer pulling a knife on him in the gym.Unbeaten prospect Nelson Machado was left fuming with the two-weight world champion from Brooklyn following a one-sided sparring session that left the Cuban red-faced in front of his girlfriend.
Teo recalled, “A guy called Nelson Machado, they used to call him Pitbull. We never really liked each other. We were sparring around 11am and he brought his girlfriend with him.
“I was beating him up, lighting him up in front of his girl. Second round came, he got frustrated and grabbed me. In the third round, he stops out of nowhere and I hit him. Next thing you know he goes for a kick, misses the kick, goes for another kick. Grabs me, pulls me down…
“He hits me on the top of my head with his knee. My father comes in and breaks it up. Machado runs out to the car and my father thought ‘oh no he’s going to get his gun.’
“My father hides me in the bathroom and is right by the door, so if he shoots me it goes through my father. That’s when I realised my father would take a bullet for me. Luckily, it was a pocket knife and they were able to stop him.”
Who is Nelson Machado?
Nelson Machado is 29 from Cuba.
His record stands at 21-0, 10 KOs.
His boxing nickname is the “Pitbull”.
Nelson won his first four fights by first-round KO within four months between September 2013-January 2014.
His quickest win took just 46 seconds.
He is a former WBC Latino super-bantamweight champion.
Machado once fought at the York Hall in Bethnal Green, known as ‘The Home of Boxing” in the UK.
His next fight is on April 12, 2026 against 17-0 Armando Martinez Rabi at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Hollywood.
