Vasiliy Lomachenko: record, next fight and profile →
Teofimo Lopez likened his showdown with Vasiliy Lomachenko to a primal battle between a young lion and an old lion during a virtual press conference Monday. A day later, the 32-year-old Lomachenko scoffed at the contention that he is anything resembling old.
There came a point in Teofimo Lopez’s young and still rising career, where a proper ring moniker was needed to describe his meteoric rise. As proud as he is of his home base, ‘El Brooklyn’ just doesn’t cover the gamut. Nor are his intentions to stick to one particular region or weight division within the sport.
Whoever wins when Vasiliy Lomachenko and Teofimo Lopez fight won’t owe the loser a rematch. Lopez revealed last month that there isn’t a rematch clause in the contracts for their highly anticipated, 12-round lightweight title unification fight October 17 at MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas (ESPN). Rematch clauses aren’t uncommon demands for established, favored champions that take on optional opponents, in this case Lomachenko.
Vasiliy Lomachenko and his team have been entertained by the trash talk offered by Teofimo Lopez—though only to a point. The upcoming World lightweight championship clash between the two best 135-pound fighters on the planet can easily be classified as a grudge match, even if much of the anger comes in one direction. Brooklyn’s Lopez (15-0, 12KOs) has never held his tongue when it comes to measuring up any opponent, although it has been ramped up whenever the discussion is of the three-division and reigning unified lightweight titlist he faces on October 17 in Las Vegas.
As a prizefighter and someone who knows Ivan Baranchyk on a personal level, it was especially difficult for Teofimo Lopez to watch what happened to him Saturday night. Baranchyk suffered four knockdowns against Jose Zepeda. The last of those knockdowns left Baranchyk on his back, unconscious for several seconds, before he eventually was helped to his feet and out of the ring following a brutal battle at MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas.
They won’t sell out Madison Square Garden, as Bob Arum, Teofimo Lopez and Vasiliy Lomachenko had hoped when they first began negotiating contracts. The venue won’t be essentially empty, either, when Lomachenko and Lopez meet in a highly anticipated, lightweight title unification fight October 17. Arum announced during a virtual press conference Monday that new Nevada State Athletic Commission protocols will allow 250 people to attend the Lomachenko-Lopez card a week from Saturday night at MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas.
Teofimo Lopez Jr. has expressed that he doesn’t respect Vasiliy Lomachenko or believe in his “hype train.” Although Lomachenko (14-1, 10 KOs) is a bit bothered by the recent rash of trash talk Lopez Jr. (15-0, 12 KOs) is dishing in recent weeks, the two-time Olympic gold medalist dished a heap of praise to his adversary ahead of their lightweight unification match Oct. 17 on ESPN.
WBC franchise, WBO, WBA lightweight champion Vasiliy Lomachenko, and IBF champion Teofimo Lopez, are on weight, pursuant to the requirements by the World Boxing Council, for their upcoming unification clash.
Three months ago, Jose Zepeda was hoping to have fought Ivan Baranchyk and—with a win—move on to a second shot at the junior welterweight title. Even with the aforementioned matchup back on the schedule, the former two-time title challenger has his sights on a different kind of opportunity. “I’ve been thinking a lot about the fight between Vasiliy Lomachenko and Teofimo Lopez,” Zepeda (32-2, 25KOs; 2NC) told BoxingScene.com of the upcoming October 17 World lightweight title fight. “In my career, I’ve gone down to 135 for good opportunities like my first world title fight when I went to England. I’m able to do 135.”
In anticipation of the Oct. 17 lightweight unification showdown between WBC Franchise/WBA/WBO world champion Vasiliy Lomachenko and IBF kingpin Teofimo Lopez, ESPN will debut Blood, Sweat and Tears: Lomachenko vs. Lopez, a two-part, behind-the-scenes look at the fighters’ camps.