Teofimo Lopez in Final Talks to Fight Josh Taylor in Junior Welterweight Title Fight

Posted on February 12, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Teofimo Lopez is thisclose to locking in a title fight…

The 25-year-old Honduran American boxer and former lightweight champion and Josh Taylor are closing in on a deal for a junior welterweight title fight this summer in the U.K., according to ESPN.

The 140-pound fight could land at the 20,000-plus seat Easter Road in Edinburgh, Scotland, sources said, with May 27 and June 3 the dates being targeted.

Taylor, who is a star in his native Scotland, has competed at home for the majority of his fights. Lopez has never competed outside the U.S.

Taylor (19-0, 13 KOs) had been set to meet Jack Catterall in a rematch on March 4, but the bout was postponed after Taylor tore a plantar fascia last month. The 32-year-old champion said he would be able to resume training in approximately six to eight weeks.

Taylor defended his undisputed championship against Catterall last February in Scotland and emerged with a split-decision victory, but the judging was marred in controversy. Now, Catterall will probably have to wait for his chance to set the record straight.

Taylor and Lopez have been on a collision course for years as they’ve traded insults. Most recently, Lopez vowed to knock Taylor out before he scored a controversial split-decision win over Sandor Martin in December.

“I’d tear him up, from the body to the head, he’s not going to know which one I’m going to hurt him with,” Lopez, who fights out of Las Vegas, told Sky Sports in December. “A lot of people would like to see me take on Josh Taylor, and I’ve been calling him out.

“Especially to do it out there in the U.K., I really want to experience that. … I actually will put him down better than what Catterall did. He won’t come back up, that’s all I can tell you.”

Lopez (18-1, 13 KOs) captured the undisputed lightweight championship with a decision victory over Vasiliy Lomachenko in October 2020.

In ESPN‘s 2021 Upset of the Year, Lopez lost his titles to George Kambosos. Afterward, Lopez moved up to 140 pounds, where he has now competed twice. Lopez is rated No. 10 at junior welterweight by ESPN.

Taylor is ESPN’s No. 2 junior welterweight. After the Catterall fight, he vacated three of his four titles to pursue the rematch (and avoid the mandatory obligations with various No. 1 contenders that would block the return bout).

But following various attempts to schedule the rematch, it appears Taylor is ready to move on, at least for now.

The matchup with Lopez is genuinely a marquee fight both across the pond and stateside. It’s also one Taylor is ultra-confident he’ll win.

“He is a very good, very skilled fighter, but I do believe that on my night I take him to bits,” Taylor told Sky Sports in December. “He’s a bit of a clown. He seems to look past his opponents all the time. It’s twice he’s made the same mistake and almost paid the price for it again.

“He thinks he’s God’s gift, and then he comes crashing back down to Earth with a bang. … Let’s not forget, he did very well to beat Lomachenko, but he beat a small, injured lightweight that really could make featherweight.”

Taylor first must fully recover from yet another injury. The plantar fascia connects the heel bone to the toes to create the arch of the foot, and it’s considered a highly painful injury.

Taylor and Lopez were both on ESPN’s pound-for-pound list at the same time before Lopez’s loss to Kambosos. Taylor, too, dropped off the list after the performance vs. Catterall.

Taylor’s impressive resume includes wins over Jose Ramirez and Regis Prograis.

Catterall, meanwhile, is slated to return March 25 in Manchester, Boxxer announced, but no opponent has been finalized.

Teofimo Lopez to Fight Sandor Martin Next Month in New York

Posted on November 17, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Teofimo Lopez has reportedly locked in his next opponent…

The 25-year-old Honduran American boxer and former lightweight champion has agreed to fight Sandor Martin on December 10 in New York, according to ESPN.

Martin (40-2, 13 KOs) replaces Jose Pedraza, who withdrew from the 140-pound Top Rank on ESPN bout with a non-COVID illness.

Martin, a 29-year-old Spaniard, scored a career-best win last year with a major upset of Mikey Garcia. Martin had never competed outside Europe but traveled to California as a 10-1 underdog to defeat Garcia, a former four-division champion, via majority decision. Garcia announced his retirement afterward.

Now, Martin has parlayed that victory into another career-defining opportunity. He was considered for the Lopez assignment before Pedraza landed the fight, but he remained in training.

A tricky boxer with an impressive jab, Martin will once again be facing long odds.

Lopez (17-1, 13 KOs) was recognized as one of the sport’s best pound-for-pound fighters before he dropped a decision to George Kambosos last November in ESPN‘s upset of the year. It was later revealed that Lopez fought Kambosos with a slight esophageal tear.

Lopez, who fights out of Las Vegas, returned from his first defeat in August with a seventh-round TKO over Pedro Campa in his 140-pound debut. His 135-pound campaign included a victory over Vasiliy Lomachenko to capture the undisputed lightweight championship.

This will be Lopez’s third fight following ESPN’s annual coverage of the Heisman Trophy presentation. He’s rated No. 9 at junior welterweight.

Teofimo Lopez In Final Talks to Fight Jose Pedraza in December

Posted on October 11, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Teofimo Lopez is thisclose to booking his next bout…

The 25-year-old Honduran American boxer, a former unified lightweight world champion, is in the process of finalizing a deal for a December10 junior welterweight fight against Jose Pedraza in New York.

The bout will be Lopez’s second at 140 pounds following a 135-pound campaign that included a victory over Vasiliy Lomachenko to capture the undisputed lightweight championship.

It will be the third time that Lopez (17-1, 13 KOs) would fight following ESPN‘s coverage of the Heisman Trophy presentation.

Lopez, who fights out of Las Vegas, returned from his first defeat in August with a seventh-round TKO over Pedro Campa.

Pedraza (29-4-1, 14 KOs), a 33-year-old from Puerto Rico, is a far tougher test as a former two-division champion. He was stopped by Gervonta Davis in Round 7 of a 2017 matchup at 130 pounds but went on to win a vacant 135-pound title with a victory over Ray Beltran one year later.

Pedraza lost that lightweight belt to Lomachenko via decision later in 2018 and dropped another decision to Jose Zepeda in 2019. Pedraza won three bouts against lesser opposition but is winless in his past two outings — a decision defeat to Jose Ramirez in March and a draw with Richard Commey in August.

Lopez was recognized as one of the sport’s best pound-for-pound fighters before he dropped a decision to George Kambosos in November in ESPN‘s upset of the year. It was later revealed that Lopez fought Kambosos with a slight esophageal tear.

Lopez subsequently moved to 140 pounds, where he could challenge for a title next year with a win against Pedraza.

Jamaine Ortiz to Fight Vasiliy Lomachenko in October

Posted on August 17, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Jamaine Ortiz has lined up his next opponent…

The 26-year-old Dominican and Puerto Rican professional boxer and Vasiliy Lomachenko have agreed to a deal for a lightweight fight that’s targeted for late October, according to ESPN.

No site has been finalized for the Top Rank Boxing on ESPN main event, sources said.

Lomachenko, formerly ESPN’s pound-for-pound No. 1 boxer, last competed in December, recording a unanimous decision victory over Richard Commey. He agreed to a deal for a fight against George Kambosos for four lightweight belts in June, but instead elected to remain in Ukraine when Russia invaded.

The 34-year-old even joined a territorial defense battalion, as did his good friend, heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk, who meets Anthony Joshua in a rematch on Saturday.

On Tuesday, Lomachenko (16-2, 11 KOs) arrived in Los Angeles to begin training camp in pursuit of the undisputed lightweight championship. Devin Haney stepped in when Lomachenko stayed in Ukraine and went on to soundly outpoint Kambosos in Australia to capture the undisputed 135-pound championship.

Haney and Kambosos are set for an Oct. 15 rematch in Melbourne, Australia, on ESPN, and the winner could be lined up for a defense vs. Lomachenko next year.

In the meantime, Lomachenko will prepare for the potential summit meeting with a matchup against Ortiz (16-0-1, 8 KOs), who broke out with a unanimous decision victory over Jamel Herring in May that led to the former champion’s retirement.

Ortiz, from Worcester, Massachusetts, has never faced anyone close to Lomachenko’s level, and even the Herring fight was a quantum leap in competition. Ortiz’s lone blemish is an eight-round draw with Joseph Adorno last year.

Lomachenko, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, lost his three lightweight titles to Teofimo Lopez in 2020 and subsequently underwent surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff. He’s rated No. 2 at lightweight and No. 9 in pound-for-pound rankings.

The chief-support bout is slated to be a featherweight matchup between Robeisy Ramirez and Jessie Magdaleno, sources said, after the sides agreed to a deal.

Teofimo Lopez Defeats Pedro Campa by TKO

Posted on August 14, 2022 by Tom Castaneda

Teofimo Lopez is back in the winner’s circle…

The 25-year-old Honduran American boxer and former champion rebounded from his first pro defeat with a seventh-round TKO of Mexican journeyman Pedro Campa on Saturday in Las Vegas.

Lopez floored Campa with an up jab in Round 7 before he pinned his foe on the ropes and unloaded with a flurry of overhand rights that prompted referee Tony Weeks to stop the fight at 2:14.

The Top Rank Boxing on ESPN main event was Lopez’s first ring action since a November loss to George Kambosos, in which he dropped four lightweight titles in ESPN‘s Upset of the Year.

The bout was also Lopez’s debut at junior welterweight, and early on, his power didn’t make its usual impact. While he wasn’t sharp in the beginning, Lopez never encountered much trouble against the 13-1 underdog according to Caesars Sportsbook.

“We’ve been at 135 (pounds) for about nine years; it was killing my body,” said Lopez, who had a slight esophageal tear when he fought Kambosos following a tumultuous training camp. “… We want Josh Taylor … We want (Regis) Prograis, we want (Jose) Zepeda, that’s what we want. We want to be a two-division world champion.

“I’ll take all them boys and take all their dreams away. I’m here to be their nightmare.”

Taylor, Prograis and Zepeda are among the class of Lopez’s new division. Campa, 30, is decidedly levels below that. His face was busted up round after round, and when the fight ended, his left eye was swelling shut and his nose was spewing blood.

Lopez, who fights out of Las Vegas, seemed to land at will, but it wasn’t necessarily a statement-making performance following the second-longest layoff of his career.

When Lopez (17-1, 12 KOs) last entered the ropes, he was coming off a victory over Vasiliy Lomachenko and was widely recognized as one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world.

Campa (34-2-1, 23 KOs) wasn’t talented enough to present any trouble, nor present the sort of test that could show Lopez’s readiness to compete for a title in a new weight class.

Joseph Diaz Jr. Agrees to WBC Lightweight Title Fight Against Devin Haney

Posted on October 22, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Joseph Diaz Jr. is thisclose to a title fight…

The 28-year-old Mexican American boxer and Devin Haney have agreed to terms for a WBC lightweight title fight on December 3 or December 4 in Las Vegas on DAZN, according to ESPN.

Contracts haven’t been signed yet but details are in the process of being finalized, sources said. The framework of the deal includes a rematch clause in the event Haney loses.

The fight is part of an intriguing three-week stretch for the lightweight division. Teofimo Lopez, who holds four lightweight titles, fights George Kambosos on November 27 on DAZN.

One week later, Eddie Hearn will promote another important lightweight fight with the Haney-Diaz clash. That same weekend, on December 5, Gervonta Davis fights Rolando Romero on Showtime PPV.

And then on December 11 on ESPN, Vasiliy Lomachenko meets Richard Commey.

The Haney-Diaz agreement caps months of back-and-forth insults traded between the boxers. When Diaz (32-1-1, 15 KOs) agreed to fight Ryan Garcia on November 27, Haney (26-0, 15 KOs) accused Diaz of ducking a chance at him.

But that fight fell through when Garcia suffered a hand injury in training and underwent surgery on Monday. With Haney and Diaz both in need of an end-of-year fight, the matchup made too much sense for all parties.

Haney, ESPN’s No. 3 lightweight, is coming off the biggest win of his career, a May decision victory over former champion Jorge Linares. Diaz, too, is coming off a strong performance, a July points win over Javier Fortuna that earned him the No. 7 spot in ESPN’s lightweight rankings.

That was the Olympian’s first fight at 135 pounds. He defeated Tevin Farmer in 2020 to win a 130-pound title and in his other title bid, lost to Gary Russell Jr. at 126 pounds in 2018.

Haney, No. 3 on ESPN’s list of the top 25 boxers under 25, is one of the sport’s fastest-rising stars. The Las Vegas-based fighter boasts over 1 million followers on Instagram, and with his abundant charisma, surely has a chance to break through to the mainstream. What’s stopped him thus far is lack of opposition.

The 22-year-old Haney often calls himself the most-avoided fighter in the sport. That can no longer be said with a stern challenger in Diaz lined up for December.

Teofimo Lopez to Fight George Kambosos in October

Posted on September 11, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Teofimo Lopez is officially ready to rumble…

The 24-year-old Honduran American boxer and George Kambosos have signed contracts for an undisputed lightweight title fight that will take place on October 4 at New York’s Hulu Theater at MSG, Triller COO Thorsten Meier tells ESPN.

The fight was set for October 5, but Triller moved the fight to avoid competing with a potential wild-card playoff game between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox in New York. If the MLB season ended today, that game would take place on October 5.

“We want to make sure the sporting fans can see both amazing events,” Meier said.

Lopez-Kambosos will be the rare Monday evening boxing match in a sport that usually — with rare exception — holds its notable events on Saturday. It’s yet another date change for the seemingly snakebitten event.

Triller won the rights to the fight at a February purse bid with $6.018 million. The fight was planned for June 5 before it was officially set for June 19 in Miami. In the days leading up to the bout, Lopez tested positive for COVID-19.

Triller announced a rescheduled date of August 14 before it looked to stage the fight on October 17 in Sydney, Australia. Lopez balked at the government-mandated 14-day quarantine, leading to a legal battle. The IBF ultimately ruled the fight couldn’t take place in a location that requires quarantine.

The bout between Lopez, a Brooklyn native, and Kambosos, a 28-year-old Australian, was then planned for October 5.

Lopez (16-0, 12 KOs) is ESPN‘s No. 1 lightweight and No. 5 pound-for-pound fighter. He won the undisputed championship in October with a unanimous-decision victory over Vasiliy Lomachenko.

Kambosos (19-0, 10 KOs), ESPN’s No. 9 lightweight, earned the title shot with a split-decision win over Lee Selby later that month.

Teofimo Lopez’s Championship Fight Against George Kambosos May Take Place in the Middle East

Posted on August 16, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Teofimo Lopez could be throwing punches in the Middle East…

In the never-ending saga to find a new fight date and location for the 24-year-old Honduran American boxer and George Kambosos, Triller co-founder Ryan Kavanaugh says he’s planning to stage the rescheduled undisputed lightweight championship fight in October in the Middle East.

“We are currently working with the regulatory bodies to bring this fight to Saudi [Arabia] or UAE [United Arab Emirates] in October,” Kavanaugh said. “We think it’s the perfect place for such a landmark fight.”

Triller hoped to stage the fight on October 17 in Sydney, but Lopez balked at the 14-day quarantine mandated by the Australian government. The disagreement led to an IBF ruling, handed down last week, that Triller must stage the fight in a location that doesn’t require a quarantine.

The New Jersey-based sanctioning body also gave Triller until October 17 to hold the fight; contracts are due by August 24.

“Can’t wait to see the details,” Lopez’s manager, David McWater, told ESPN when informed of Triller’s Middle East plan. “We were always willing to go anywhere we didn’t have to quarantine.”

In the event Triller fails to submit contracts by August 24, the rights to the fight will revert to the next-highest bidder at February’s auction. That would be Eddie Hearn‘s Matchroom, which bid $3.506 million. Lopez’s promoter, Top Rank, came in third at $2.315 million. Triller won the rights with a bid of $6.018 million.

The matchup was initially set for June 19 in Miami, where Lopez grew up, but he tested positive for COVID-19 weeks before the fight.

“He feels great,” McWater said. “He’s been training.”

Lopez, ESPN’s No. 5 pound-for-pound boxer, unified all four 135-pound titles with a majority decision victory over Vasiliy Lomachenko in October. He was ordered by the IBF to face Kambosos (19-0, 10 KOs) next, but Lopez and Top Rank couldn’t agree on money. That led to the auction, where Triller gobbled up the rights.

Lopez (16-0, 12 KOs) is set to earn a career-high $3.912 million; he made $1.35 million for the Lomachenko bout.

Kambosos, ESPN’s No. 9 lightweight, will earn $2.106 million, also a career high. The 28-year-old Australian fighter became the IBF’s No. 1 contender with a split decision win over Lee Selby in October.

Earlier that month, Lopez added three more titles to his collection with his win over Lomachenko. He won his first title with a second-round KO of Richard Commey in December 2019.

Now, Lopez appears to be inching closer to the first defense of his undisputed lightweight crown.

Teofimo Lopez Agrees to Restructured Contract with Top Rank Promotions

Posted on June 13, 2021 by Tom Castaneda

Teofimo Lopez has a new contract…

The 23-year-old Honduran American professional boxer and current unified lightweight world champion and Top Rank Promotions are back on good terms after agreeing to a restructured contract, according to ESPN.

In the new agreement, Lopez will have his minimum purses raised from the previous amount of $1.25 million and will have the opportunity for pay-per-view bouts on ESPN+, a source confirmed.

The deal comes on the heels of an acrimonious negotiation for Lopez’s upcoming title defense against George Kambosos on June 19. Top Rank and Lopez failed to come to an agreement on his salary for that fight, and the bout went to a purse bid. Triller, an upstart streaming service, easily won the rights with a $6 million bid, with Lopez getting around $3.9 million.

Lopez (16-0, 12 KOs) is making his first title defense since beating Vasiliy Lomachenko last year to win three of the four major belts in the 135-pound division. Kambosos (19-0, 10 KOs) is the IBF‘s mandatory challenger for its version of the title.

Lopez is also looking for a major opponent on October 2 if he successfully defends his titles, sources confirmed to ESPN. Devin Haney (26-0, 15 KOs), the WBC lightweight champion, has repeatedly expressed his desire to face Lopez. In a Twitter post issued Saturday, Top Rank matchmaker Bruce Trampler said Lopez also wants that fight but that Haney has “contractual issues to resolve.”

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