Subriel Matias and Teofimo Lopez are close to a deal for a March 15th fight for Teo’s WBO 140-lb title on ESPN PPV. The former IBF light welterweight champion Matias (21-2, 21 KOs) will be looking to become a two-time 140-lb champion against Lopez.
Deal Close
The Matchroom-promoted Matias fought once since losing his IBF belt to Liam Paro on June 15th, and he wants to dethrone Lopez.
“Teofimo Lopez and Subriel Matias are finalizing a deal for a March 15 fight for Lopez’s WBO junior welterweight title, sources told ESPN. Fight will headline ESPN+ PPV. No location yet for this action fight between one of the sport’s top fighters and a former champion,” said Mike Coppinger on X.
Teofimo has been pushing for a big fight for the last four years, but his promoters have failed to offer him anything compelling. Matias might be the best that Lopez can hope for right now until something opens up for him.
A loss to Matias would devastate Lopez, who has won his last five fights since his defeat against George Kambosos Jr. on November 27, 2021. That’s why it’s hard to believe Teo will take this fight; it involves a lot of risks and not the big payday that he’s been pushing for with his callouts of Terence Crawford and Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis.
Dan Rafael reports that he was told this by Top Rank about the Teofimo Lopez vs. Subriel Matias negotiations: “It’s soooooo far from getting done. Yes, there’s been conversations — but miles apart.”
That’s not exactly promising. We’re talking about Teofimo here. He believes he’s the ‘king of the light welterweight division based on his win over former undisputed 140-lb champion Josh Taylor on June 10, 2023, and he feels that win made him a two-division four-belt champion.
Taylor only held the WBO and Ring 140-lb titles when Teofimo beat him. So, he didn’t become the undisputed champ in a real sense from that win.