Teofimo Lopez lost his super lightweight world title to Shakur Stevenson in New York last weekend, and he was no match for his challenger in any way.

Lopez entered the ring as the underdog, and even though he was fighting a newcomer to the division at heavyweight, he performed better than even most expected over the course of twelve rounds.

That leaves fans wondering what’s next for the 28-year-old, who has wins over Vasily Lomachenko and Josh Taylor but also struggled in the main event against the likes of Sandor Martin and suffered his only previous loss to George Kambosos Jr.

With so much more to give to the sport, there should be no calls for retirement, and the Brooklyn native has now announced via Instagram Stories that he will be moving up to welterweight. This comes after no apparent struggle to reach the 140 super lightweight limit, perhaps just to find new big fight opportunities.

Also waiting for him are world champions Devin Haney, Lewis Crocker, Rolando Romero and Mario Barrios. Ryan Garcia will challenge Barrios for the WBC belt this month and could have challenged either the winner or Romero.

Interestingly, while Lopez may not think so, Stevenson is also considering a promotion. After the win, he shouted loudly and confronted Ben, expressing great confidence in moving up to 147 and beating the bigger guys. However, given Stevenson’s insistence on a 10-pound rehydration clause, which the Briton refused, the fight looked unlikely to happen.

It may take some time for Lopez to announce his next move in a more credible way.