THE RESULT: Luis Alberto Lopez makes a third successful defence of his IBF featherweight belt stopping Reiya Abe with 39 seconds left of the eighth round.
KEY MOMENTS: In the opening round a Lopez left hook caught Abe and damaged the right eye of the Japanese fighter. With the eye immediately swollen Abe faced an uphill battle such was the damage.
RECORDS: After 32 fights Lopez’s record now stands at 30-2 (17). Abe suffered the fourth defeat of his career taking him to 25-4-1 (10).
TALKING POINT: The fighting style of Lopez. Unorthodox, unrelenting, and unpredictable. It’s wild but effective. The Mexican’s left hook caught Abe no matter where he positioned himself. Not only that but Lopez walks in like a windmill at times which forced Abe, and opponents in the past, to cover up and do their best to absorb what comes their way.
QUOTABLE: “I came out to finish that fight in the eighth round because I looked over to see my wife, I looked over to see my daughter and mother and said this is the moment to end this fight,” Lopez said. As for what’s next the winner reiterated his ambitions. “I told you guys time and time again my dream is to unify the world titles at 126 but I’m willing to move up to 130. Oscar Valdez and Liam Wilson are fighting, I’ll take on that winner, too.”
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? There is no doubt Lopez is willing fight anyone and anywhere. Beating Josh Warrington in Leeds, Michael Conlan in Belfast and defeating the likes of Joet Gonzalez and Reiya Abe all in 15 months is an impressive run and a sign of a fighter who doesn’t like to be inactive. Lopez will throw himself into a featherweight unification or, as he stated, be willing to move up to super-featherweight.
