LAST year, Luis Alberto Lopez was on the wrong side of one of the most devastating knockouts of the calendar, losing his IBF featherweight title to Angelo Leo and suffering a bleed on the brain back in August – leading to doubts as to whether he will or should return to the ring.
To the surprise of many, Lopez made his comeback on Saturday night, just seven months after the career-threatening injury, and now ‘El Venado’ is in hot pursuit of the man that put an end to his reign as world champion.
Hailing from Mexicali, Lopez, 31-3 (17 KOs), returned to fight in his hometown on for the first time since 2021, having built a reputation as a fearless ‘road warrior’ in recent years, defeating Josh Warrington in Leeds for the IBF title, defending it on away soil against Michael Conlan in Belfast and attempting to do the same against Albuquerque’s Leo.
Here, Lopez was tasked with Eduardo Montoya, 21-8-1 (14 KOs), and seemed unhampered by any damage caused by defeat to Leo, dropping Montoya in the opening round with a left-hook to the temple before Montoya begrudgingly got back to his feet.
Yet, Montoya would soon return to the canvas, folding after the very next punch – a well-executed left-hook to the body that rendered him unable to beat the referee’s count.
Whether Lopez should fight amongst the peak of the featherweight division this year or not remains a controversial topic, with health concerns as to whether Lopez has fully recovered, despite the 31-year-old’s quick turn-around and solid display.
However, prior to Saturday’s victory, Lopez made his intentions clear, telling the local Mexican press of his plans to meet with Leo for a second time and avenge the lone stoppage defeat of his career.
“I was asking for the chance to return to Mexicali. It wasn’t how I wanted it, but being here is already a plus. It’s [about] getting back on track to becoming a world champion. We want a rematch against Angelo Leo.”
Angelo Leo, 25-1 (12 KOs), is scheduled to defend his IBF featherweight title, travelling to Osaka, Japan to face Tomoki Kameda, 42-4 (23 KOs), in a world title double-header on Saturday, May 24.
