By Jake Donovan

On a slow boxing weekend, Pedro Guevara and Ganigan Lopez  take center stage in about that will have major ramifications in the junior flyweight division. 


Guevara (25-1-1, 17KOs) attempts the second defense of the title he claimed on the road with a 7th round knockout of Akira Yaegashi last New Year's Eve in Japan. 

As is the case with tonight's fight, Guevara's first title defense was also a homecoming. The night ended in emphatic victory, coring a knockout win over Richard Claveras in April.

Lopez (25-5, 16KOs) comes in riding a five-fight win streak following a knockout loss to Denver Cuello two years ago.

Earning the right to fight for the title, Lopez scored a 12-round decision over former strawweight titlist Mario Rodriguez last January.

BOXINGSCENE.COM STAFF PREDICTIONS: PEDRO GUEVARA vs. GANIGAN LOPEZ

Jake Donovan (Guevara KO8): A good matchup in terms of action, but look for Guevara to prove a considerable gap in class exists between the two. A competitive battle early eventually becomes a showcase performance for the hometown champ. 

Michael Gibbons (Guevara TKO7): Guevara retains the title, continues to pressure Nietes for the top spot at junior flyweight. 

Takahiro Onaga (Guevara UD): I like this fight a lot! Guevara, however, is in a different league than Lopez. In fact, Guevara is #2 in weight (junior flyweight) for me behind Nietes. Guevara outboxes Lopez to a competitive but clear win.

Cliff Rold (Guevara KO): Guevara showed real growth against Yaegashi and he's the fresher of the two. Lopez has been stopped before and it happens again but we'll get some fireworks before it happens. 

Alexey Sukachev (Guevara UD): Should be a good fight. Lopez lost convincingly only once and looked solid recently. Guevara was in beast mode against Yaegashi and Claveras but against Lopez he will be forced to work hard to preserve his belt.

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox