(Photo Credit: Amanda Kwok / SHOWTIME) By Dan Ambrose: Juan Manuel Lopez (31-1, 28 KO’s) won’t have anymore excuses if he loses against to WBO featherweight champion Orlando Salido (37-11-2, 25 KO’s) in their rematch televised by HBO at the Coliseo Roberto Clemente, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Lopez says the two of them are going to go to war again just like their fight last April where Lopez was pounded until the referee had to rescue him from Salido to save Lopez.

As bad as Lopez got beat in that fight, you’d think that his training team would have retooled his style to keep him away from Salido because he had so many problems trying to handle his power. However, Lopez says he’s going to try training with Salido. I don’t know he wants to do that, but I guess it’s some ego thing he feels he has to prove.

Lopez said “This fight is going to be a war. Orlando, you have a good night last year, but I want my title back.”

Lopez wants the title back, but he’s not going to get it the easy way if that’s what he was hoping by asking for it. No, Lopez is going to have to earn it the hard way by going out and taking the hardest shots that Salido can throw and then come back with his own big shots to either stop him or grind out a decision. I think it’s a pretty bad idea for the glass-chinned Lopez to be trying to trade with a fighter as tough and as strong as Salido. Lopez isn’t built as good for the featherweight division as Salido and he just can’t take the big shots without getting hurt. The thing is if Salido hurts Lopez with one of his right hands, you can rest assured that he’ll be following up with additional big shots in order to try and take him out. Salido may need to take Lopez out in order to avoid a potential questionable decision loss. He’s a visiting fighter and you know how hard it is for the visiting fighter to get a decision win.