Golden Boy Promotions head Oscar De La Hoya wants to play a pivotal part in piecing the lightweight puzzle moving forward into 2021.
Following Teofimo Lopez’s resounding unanimous decision victory over Vasiliy Lomachenko, the IBF, WBO, WBA and WBC Franchise titlist Lopez is now the king of the 135-pound division.
Before Lopez moves on to 140, De La Hoya wants to match him up with one of the fastest-rising stars in the sport in Ryan Garcia.
“I can’t wait to do Teofimo in the future with Ryan Garcia. That’s the fight to make. It’s crazy, because everyone is after Ryan Garcia. Imagine that. But Teofimo rocks. He killed it. He’s going to be a great champion for many years to come. We can’t wait to make those big fights happen,” De La Hoya said in an Instagram Live session.
“You know one thing about me is that I love making all of the fights happen, and fighting the very best. I seriously feel that Ryan Garcia wants that as well. Believe me. [Luke] Campbell [on Dec.5] is a tough fight. When [Garcia] gets past Campbell, the sky's the limit for Ryan. He’s the superstar now. He’s going to fight the very best.
“Ryan versus Teo — why not?” said De La Hoya, right before adding that Gervonta Davis and Devin Haney are two other opponents he’s eyeing for Garcia in the not too distant future.
De La Hoya also offered some quick thoughts on the lightweight unification fight between Lopez and Lomachenko on Saturday in Las Vegas.
“It was a great fight. I’d picked Lomachenko, just because of the experience, but Teofimo pulled it off,” said De La Hoya. “He showed true heart. He’s an amazing champion … Teofimo proved that a good big guy always beats a good small guy. It’s always like that.”
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist and member of the Boxing Writers Assn. of America since 2011. He has written for the likes of the LA Times, Guardian, USA Today, Philadelphia Inquirer, Men’s Health and NFL.com. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan or via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com.
