By: Sean Crose
Teofimo Lopez, a former WBA, IBF and WBO lightweight player, will return to the ring this Saturday night when he takes on the largely unannounced Pedro Campa at Resorts World Las Vegas in a 10-round lightweight bout. schedule. This will be Lopez’s first foray into that division. It would be Campa’s chance of a lifetime. If 30-year-old Lopez is the favorite this weekend, he will be boxing’s new toast. Suffice it to say, observers gave Campa plenty of opportunities. Make no mistake about it, this is supposed to be an adjustment fight for Lopez.
There is, of course, a good reason for this. Lopez was a real rising star when he beat the seemingly invincible Vasyl Lomachenko in the fall of 2020. However, the honeymoon ended surprisingly short, as Lopez surprised against George Kamabosos in his first title defense. Australia’s Kambosos is basically said to be a stepping stone for Lopez to fame. Instead, it was the Kambosos who walked away with the win, as well as Lopez’s belt, after their match last November. For Lopez, the experience was an unexpected and sudden one, falling from above.
He will fall even further if he loses to Campos 34-1-1 this weekend. However, few expected that to happen. Lopez 16-1 can hit like a sledgehammer. He’s also brilliant on the inside and carries a colorful swagger that would terrify the most unconnoisseur of customers. However, Lopez has proven that he is not always a great client himself. He only relies on his strength to fight Kambosos to harm himself. After that, he showed a lack of sportsmanship after a surprise defeat to Aussie. Few people know who he is, but the experienced Campos knows how to take down opponents. It will be interesting to see if Lopez can – or can – get her man out there soon. If he can’t, things might get more interesting.
13-0 middleweight Xander Zayas will appear in Saturday’s co-main event when his up and going man (he’s just 19) takes on Elias Espadas 22-4-0 in a scheduled 8-round bout . Zayas was the one to keep an eye on here, having wiped out all but four of his opponents in the distance. On the other hand, 31-year-old Espadas have not lost in the last 6 matches.
The Teofimo Lopez-Pedro Campa card will be broadcast live by ESPN (and ESPN+) starting at 10 p.m. Eastern Time on Saturday.
