By Miguel Rivera
The challenge sent by former world champion Jose "Sniper" Pedraza, to dangerous Mexican contender Antonio Lozada Jr., was well received by promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank.
Arum believes the lightweight contest has legs, but he's unsure if a bout between Pedraza and Lozada Jr. could end up on the undercard of the scheduled card on May 12 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, which is going to be headlined by a lightweight bout between Vasyl Lomachenko and Jorge Linares.
Pedraza, who was signed by Top Rank at the beginning of the year, revealed his desire to face Lozada Jr. to avenge the defeat suffered last Saturday by his compatriot Felix "El Diamante" Verdejo.
Both boxers fought on the card, which took place at the Theater in Madison Square Garden,
Pedraza was victorious in his Top Rank debut, but Verdejo was not as fortunate.
Verdejo was coming back from 13 month layoff. He was winning the fight early, but faded down the stretch. In the tenth and final round, he was badly hurt and knocked down. As he was getting punished, the ringside doctor advised the referee to stop the fight.
"Pedraza is a great fighter. He's one of those classic style fighters," said Arum to Carlos Narvaez. "I see possible a fight with Lozada Jr. After all they were the winners of their respective matches and our goal with him is to go back and look for a world title opportunity."
Arum said it is still too early to know if a duel between Pedraza and Lozada Jr. could be included in the May 12 event at the Garden. But he assured that this possibility will be on the table at a future meeting within his office when the undercard is worked out.
"It's too early to be sure if it could be included in the Lomachenko-Linares event," Arum said.
