Teofimo Lopez ‘almost died’ making weight for George Kambosos defeat, claims promoter Bob Arum

Bob Arum, a legendary US boxing promoter, has claimed that Teofimo Lopez "almost died" while reducing to 135lbs to face George Kambosos last January.

In a shocking defeat at Madison Square Garden, Lopez was defeated on points by Kambosos. This left Lopez bruised and bloody.

Arum revealed that Lopez's weight loss from light welterweight and to lightweight may have led to a "fatality".

FightHype was told by him: "First, we want to get his health. He shouldn't have been fighting against Kambosos at 135 [lbs].

"He almost died from a fatal illness. Because of his weight gain, he almost died.

It's not a joke. He'll be fine at 140 [lbs]. We are working with him to address other issues.

"Once these problems have been solved, we will look for an enemy and get him back into the ring."

Lopez will gain weight to become a light welterweight to prevent another health scare.

As Arum mentioned, Lopez is experiencing 'physical issues' and doesn't have a date for his next fight.

These problems could be caused by the dangerous chest condition that was discovered after the Kambosos losses.

Lopez could have also died while trying to lose weight for the fight. A doctor also suggested that the condition, pneumomediastinum, could have also been fatal.

It is caused by air between the chest and the lung. This condition was discovered only after Lopez's defeat.

Lopez may be out of commission for a while, but could return to the ring in the future.

The 24-year-old previously suggested the possibility of a clash with Josh Taylor, the Scottish light-welterweight champion.