Undefeated junior welterweight king Josh Taylor (19-0, 13 KOs) will defend his WBO title against former lightweight kingpin Teofimo Lopez (18-1, 13 KOs) on ESPN Saturday night in The Theater at Madison Square Garden. The fighters were kept far apart at Thursday’s press conference.
Josh Taylor: “He means what he says, and I mean what I say. There is genuine dislike here. He’s been disrespectful. I’m going to make him pay for his words on Saturday. I can’t wait to get in there. You will see a Josh Taylor win, possibly by KO, and nice and early as well.”
Teofimo Lopez: “I worked my a** off. Eleven weeks of camp. This is going to be the best version of me. Practice makes improvement. We’ve improved since my last fight. We’re ready to put on a show. I’m going to be a two-time lineal world champion…I’m here to come in there and take everything that you’ve got.”
Why only for the WBO belt. I heart they stripped Taylor of 1 belt. I’m with the “Take Over”
I’m not sold on Teo. Kambosos landed a lot of punches. And Loma was picking Teo apart once he finally started throwing the second half of that fight.
I think Taylor will win a decision.
I think the WBA stripped him and he vacataed the WBC & IBF because they wanted mandatories and Taylor wanted to fight Catterall again.
Good that is for the WBO, therefore, Takeover 2.0 will be in full affect and capture the other titles one x one.
“This is going to be the best version of me” – we will see, how many times do fighters say this but turns out to be the same old them. I think the only way we will see Teo improve is when he relieves his Dad of his duties and gets a real boxing trainer
I hope Josh Taylor schools Lopez, Lopez is overrated in my book!
I think this fight is a tough call but one thing I’m clear of is that Teo is a big irritation.
great match up, it will determine where both are, we will see how good josh taylor is and also if Teo who he said he is, hope to see a good fight Saturday
Taylor is a solid Champion and fighter but Teo is just a little over the top. I see Teo qinning by a body shot or stoppage inside of 6 rounds.
Taylor may have looked like crap against Catterall, but Teo has looked worse in his last two. Lopez lost to a 20-1 underdog, then was given a gift against that Spanish guy that was dropping him with cute little harmless potshots.
Anything can happen, but I’m going with Taylor and I wouldn’t be surprised if he knocks Lopez out.
Taylor has got the skills and Lopez has the mouth. Taylor by decision, Lopez looked lost when he fought sandor martin. I understand being cocky, but Lopez takes the cake along with his dad.
I hope Taylor can shut this guy and his father the f- up. A knock out or emphatic win is what I’d like to see. We’ll see. Taylor’s been out a while.
Teo by KO in the 9th round, he looks focuses and ready to go as he said for the kill.
Teo taking to far with comments better Bri A game if he lose this Saturday night better he should retire
Teo is too small for Taylor and his power doesn’t mean anything to these super lightweights. Prograis never hurt Taylor, so I doubt Lopez will be able to. If Taylor was able to make the weight comfortably and have a good camp then I think he stops Lopez about midway through the fight. This likely isn’t the same Josh Taylor who had a bad night against Jack Catterall, and if he’s at 85 to 90% of what he was when he became undisputed then he 100% stops this overrated hype job.
Taylor TKO 7
This should be a pretty good fight.. hopefully Tiofemo is healthy and his old self again. But it’s only one way to find out.. he says he feels good. Based on the styles from their past fights this should be interesting and entertaining. I’ll be checking it out
This is an interesting fight. Taylor has a good size advantage and likes to let his hands go off in combos once he has his opponents figured out. He will need to fight off the back foot and use angles on a regular basis to keep Lopez second guessing himself.
Lopez will need to find counters from mid range to inside to gain respect and make Taylor a little gun-shy. Taylor is not as fast as Kambosos, but he most definitely hits harder.
Its a tough pick as I’m a fan of both fighters. This will be an ugly decision with lots of holding and long gaps between engagements.
If it’s a good scrap, we will get a draw so they can run it back. Whoever controls the pace will win by scores of 115-113 or 114-112. Unpopular of.course.
Interesting fight the old brawler vs technician fight we all like..
I am really looking forward to seeing this fight!! I think Teo gets stopped in 10!! Josh will prove to be tougher and better than Lopez thinks!
Both of these 2 are loudmouths nasty piece. But Lopez is a bit above Taylor with that.
lmao!!!
Teo is the Lone Wolf in this fight.
I am not convinced of the Take Over, his last fight was a gimme in my opinion, so Taylor takes the Decision….