By Miguel Rivera
Two-time world champion Juan Manuel "Juanma" Lopez will pursue a new direction for his career in the boxing world.
Lopez informed the media that he has terminated his contractual relationship with Black Tiger Promotions, company head Carlos Maldonado. Not long ago Vazquez Jr. accused Black Tiger of owing him money for the Juanma encounter, which was broadcast as an independent pay-per-view event from Puerto Rico.
Last October, Lopez defeated Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. by TKO which represented a new breath of fresh air for his career. However, Black Tiger Promotions did not live up to the expectations of securing him another significant fight, according to Lopez.
The fight with Vazquez Jr. was the first for Lopez (35-5, 32 KOs) in nearly two years after suffering brutal back to back knockouts at the hands of former world champions Jesus Cuellar and Francisco Vargas.
But Lopez remains suspended by the Professional Boxing Commission of Puerto Rico. After the fight with Vazquez, Lopez got involved in a physical confrontation with trainer Albert Rivera, who was working the corner of Vazquez.
Both of them were ordered to appear before a hearing and then suspended over the brawl and issued a fine. The suspension for Juanma expires on May 31, and then he will be free to fight as he pleases.
"I have ended my relationship with Maldonado and Black Tiger, and I have a lot of experience in boxing, some ideas have been discussed, some plans have not been finalized," Juanma said to Carlos Gonzalez.
"I started training, I do not have an exact plan, and next month I will turn 34 and I can not keep waiting. I want to be a free agent, and although there are some agreements with Maldonado, the reality is that they have been breached, there are clauses that have not been fulfilled."