Teofimo Lopez does not rule out a competitive 12-round battle, or even an upset, when Ryan Garcia defends his WBC world title against Conor Benn.
The pair will square off at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena this weekend, with Garcia making a first title defence after dethroning Mario Barrios in February.
This unanimous decision victory followed a far less impressive performance against Rolando Romero, who dropped and outpointed ‘King Ry’ in May 2025.
With that particular defeat arriving at the completion of a year-long doping ban, though, many believe Garcia is now back to his best and should be considered a sizable favourite against Benn.
Such pre-fight assessments can partly be explained by the fact that Benn has not made 147lbs since 2022, before testing positive for banned substance clomifene later that year.
But while Lopez agrees that the 29-year-old should be considered an underdog, the newly-crowned WBA welterweight champion has told Fight Hub TV that he is hardly sure of a dominant Garcia victory.
“There could be an upset. You see the pictures [of Benn looking depleted]; you see how his facial structure looks and everything like that.
“I think a lot of people are focusing more on those things than [on] the skills. It should be a competitive fight. I think Ryan Garcia has a greater chance of winning this fight than Conor Benn. However, this is boxing and anything goes.”
Lopez went on to highlight the speed of Garcia, while also acknowledging the fact that Benn has not made 147lbs in over four years.
At the same time, though, ‘The Takeover’ admitted that Benn could hear the final bell on account of his durability and pride.
Should the Brit manage to spring the upset, he has already made it clear that he will be vacating the belt to move up in weight, perhaps as high as 168lbs, due to the “brutal” cut he has faced to make 147.
