By Mark Vester
WBO super bantamweight champ Juan Manuel Lopez is delighted that WBC champ Israel Vazquez is willing to fight him if the money is right. If Juanma has his way, he would like the fight to take place next June in New York, around the time of the Puerto Rican Day Parade. He says that in order for people to look at him as the best, he must fight and beat fighters like Vazquez and Rafael Marquez.
"I'm very happy to know that Israel is willing to fight me. I know that he is going to look for a large amount of money for that fight, and so will I, but the idea is to fight him the night before the Puerto Rican Day Parade in New York," Lopez to Primera Hora.
"It all depends on the negotiations. It is a fight that interests so many of the Mexican and Puerto Rican fans. Right now Vazquez and Rafael Marquez are the two best in the division and if one wants to be recognized as the best, they eventually have to fight them both."
There was some talk that Lopez would fight WBO bantamweight champ Gerry Penalosa on the undercard to Oscar De La Hoya-Manny Pacquiao on December 6 in Las Vegas, but Lopez turned the fight down.
He claims that Penalosa was overpricing himself by demanding $250,000 dollars for the fight, an amount of money rarely paid these days to boxers taking part in pay-per-view undercard fights. He is likely going to fight Sergio Medina (33-1, 18KOs) of Argentina on the card. Medina's sole loss came by way of decision to Rey Bautista on the May 07 undercard to De La Hoya-Mayweather.
"The name [of my next] opponent is being said to be Sergio Medina. Right now it's the bext direction to take. The circle of possible opponents is getting smaller and probably within a year I'm going to move up to 126-pounds," Lopez said. "Penalosa dared to say that I'm running from him, but if I wanted to fight him tomorrow, I have no doubt that I would knock him out."
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