By Allan Fox: A fight between former WBA light welterweight champion Marcos Maidana (33-3, 30 KO’s) and Josesito Lopez (30-5, 18 KO’s) is being discussed by Golden Boy Promotions, according to Steve Kim. There’s no date yet for the fight, but given that both of them haven’t fought in 2013 yet, it would have to be soon.
Maidana, 29, destroyed Angel Hernandez by a 3rd round knockout in December in an easy tune-up fight in Buenos Aires, Argentina, whereas Lopez hasn’t fought since last September when he was blown out by the much stronger, if not bigger, WBC junior middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.
Lopez moved up from the light welterweight division to take that big payday, and he didn’t look good at the weight division despite weighing the same as Alvarez. It just looked like Lopez put on 20 pounds of flab in moving up in weight, and he was simply no match for Canelo.
Maidana, #2 WBA, was hoping to get a title shot against WBA welterweight champion Paulie Malignaggi, but it’s doubtful that he was ever seriously considered for that fight because he’s too dangerous and not a big enough name to give Malignaggi the big payday bout that he so badly craves.
Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer would like to match Maidana against WBC interim light welterweight champion Lucas Matthysse in an all Argentina bout, but Matthysse has been cool to that idea because he prefers to WBC light welterweight champion Danny Garcia for title than to face a non-champion from a higher weight division like Maidana.
Lopez, #14 WBC, would be a good test for Maidana, because he’s got decent power and he really likes to slug it out. Lopez defeated former WBC welterweight champion Victor Ortiz last year by a 9th round stoppage in June.
That fight was a war with both guys trading huge shots until Ortiz quit on his stool following the 9th round due to a broken jaw.
Maidana would likely be the favorite against Lopez because he’s got so much raw power. He might be able to do exactly what Canelo did if he’s able to get Lopez to stand and trade with him. I’d be surprised if Lopez continues to fight like that after what Canelo did to him, and he’d be crazy to try and brawl with a puncher like Maidana. That would be like handing the fight to him.
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