Teofimo Lopez set for 1st defense vs. familiar foe Jamaine Ortiz
Keyshawn Davis steps up against Jose Pedraza in Feb. 8 co-feature
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Teofimo Lopez will make his first defense of the lineal/WBO junior welterweight title against Jamaine Ortiz on Feb. 8, Top Rank announced on Thursday.
The bout, which has been expected for several weeks, will headline a Top Rank Boxing on ESPN card (ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN+, 10:30 p.m. ET) at Michelob ULTRA Arena at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.
The fight will take place on the Thursday night before Super Bowl LVIII will be played Feb. 11 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, which will be filled with sports fans.
In the 10-round lightweight co-feature, top prospect Keyshawn Davis, the 2020 U.S. Olympic silver medalist, will take on by far the most notable opponent of his career in former lightweight and junior lightweight titleholder Jose Pedraza.
“Teofimo Lopez is among the best fighters in the world and always wants to fight the best available opponent,” Top Rank chairman Bob Arum said. “Jamaine Ortiz is a supreme talent who fits the bill. I believe Keyshawn Davis is a future world champion, but you can never count out a skilled two-weight world champion like Jose Pedraza.”
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Lopez has won three fights in a row since a massive upset decision loss to George Kambosos Jr. in November 2021 cost him the three-belt unified lightweight title. He then moved up to junior welterweight, won two bouts and got a mandatory shot at Scotland’s Josh Taylor.
They met in June at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York, the same venue where Lopez lost to Kambosos, but this time Lopez put on a clinic to win a unanimous decision and the 140-pound title.
Brooklyn, New York, native Lopez (19-1, 13 KOs), 26, claimed afterward that he was retiring, in part because he has been going through a nasty divorce and custody battle over his son. But the retirement was very brief and he planned to return even though he elected to pass on a date in December to make his first defense.
“’The Takeover’ will entertain inside that squared circle as only I can,” Lopez said. “To the boxing fans around the world, I look to not only dominate and break down Jamaine Ortiz, but to do it in such a fashion that my division will be put on alert.”
He and Ortiz are familiar with each other. In the 2015 National Golden Gloves final, Lopez defeated Ortiz via three-round decision.
“Jamaine is tough,” Lopez said. “I would know, because I faced him back in the amateur days in 2015 for the National Golden Gloves championship. I’ll show the world that champions don't flinch when faced with challenges. They rise and shine the brightest when the stakes are highest. This one is for all my people on ‘The Takeover Express.’ Let’s show the world once again what real boxing looks like.”
Ortiz (17-1-1, 8 KOs), 27, of Worcester, Massachusetts, made a name for himself with a unanimous decision over former junior lightweight titlist Jamel Herring in May 2022, a victory he parlayed into an October 2022 fight with former pound-for-pound king and three-division champion Vasiliy Lomachenko, who had lost a decision to Lopez in a three-belt unification fight in 2020. Ortiz was a heavy underdog against Lomachenko and lost a unanimous decision in their lightweight bout but it was highly competitive. In his only fight since, Ortiz outpointed Antonio Moran in September.
“This is the most important fight of my career,” Ortiz said. “It’s my first world title bout. I believe this fight will bring out the very best in me, and I’m looking forward to coming home as the new champion.”
‘I look to not only dominate and break down Jamaine Ortiz, but to do it in such a fashion that my division will be put on alert,’ — Teofimo Lopez
Davis, the 2022 Fight Freaks Unite prospect of the year, taking on Pedraza was in the works for Dec. 9 but that was before the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation suspended Davis (9-0, 6 KOs), 24, of Norfolk, Virginia, for 90 days.
The reason was because he tested positive for marijuana, which remains on the banned list, in a post-fight drug test following a 10-round majority decision win against Nahir Albright on Oct. 14 in Rosenberg, Texas. The result of the bout was changed to a no contest.
“I have all the respect in the world for Jose Pedraza and what he’s accomplished in the pro game,” Davis said. “This is type of step up I need to get to the next level, and I know Pedraza will bring his A-game. It’s his last chance to get back to title contention, but I won’t let that happen. I will show out for the fans in Las Vegas and everyone watching on ESPN.”
Pedraza (29-5-1, 14 KOs), 34, of Puerto Rico, may be 0-2-1 in his last three bouts but he still remains a formidable opponent. In those three most recent bouts he lost a competitive decision to Arnold Barboza Jr. in February; fought to a draw with former lightweight titlist Richard Commey in August 2022; and lost a competitive decision to former unified junior welterweight titlist Jose Ramirez in March 2022. Pedraza has been a junior welterweight since 2019 but will move down to lightweight for the fight.
“Keyshawn Davis is going to experience what it's like to face a two-division world champion,” Pedraza said. “He’s never faced a boxer of my caliber, nor has he faced anyone even close to the caliber of my toughest opponents. He wants to continue climbing up the ranks, but he’ll be falling off the ladder.”
Among the bouts on the ESPN+ stream of preliminaries will be two of Top Rank’s best prospects:
Lightweight Emiliano Vargas (8-0, 7 KOs), 19, of Las Vegas, who is the son of former two-time junior middleweight titlist Fernando Vargas, will face Tomas Ornelas (7-3, 5 KOs), 26, of Denver, in a six-rounder. Vargas went 6-0 with five knockouts in 2023.
Lightweight Abdullah Mason (11-0, 9 KOs), 19, of Cleveland, will fight fellow southpaw Benjamin Gurment (8-0-3, 5 KOs), 31, of Fort Worth, Texas, in his first scheduled eight-rounder. Fight Freaks Unite ranked Mason as the No. 9 prospect in the annual year-end roundup.
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Very good card. I don't doubt Keyshawn Davis's talent. But he reminds me a bit of Andre Ward. Fights smart, but doesn't ever fight mean. I don't necessarily have to see a knockout. But at least don't act like you're so pleased with yourself during a fight, that you don't need it. BTW, the same could be said about Devin Haney, Shakur Stevenson and too many others. I'm the typical fan that wants PPV Knockouts for my PPV Money.