Juan Manuel Lopez was supposed
to be Puerto Rico’s next big thing, the next fighter from the Isla del Encanto
to represent the Boricua red, white, and blue at the highest level of the
sport. He was the next in line, heir to a throne that saw stars such as Miguel
Cotto, Felix Trinidad, Wilfredo Gomez, Carlos Ortiz, and Hector Camacho win
world respect for the Caribbean island.
Now defeated and deflated,
Lopez (33-2, 30 KOs) finds himself with the tough task of attempting a return
to glory this Saturday against the mega-talented and mega-deadly undefeated
Mexican American rising star, Mikey Garcia (31-0, 26 KOs) at the American
Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. Most fans and experts regard the task of
upending the 25-year-old reigning WBO featherweight champ to be all but
impossible and see Lopez’s main stage rebirth as highly improbable.
At one point in time, though,
the heavy-handed, charismatic “Juanma” Lopez sure looked to be on the road to
stardom. In 2008, just a couple of weeks shy of his twenty-fifth birthday, he
destroyed veteran Mexican tough man, Daniel Ponce de Leon in just one round to
win the WBO junior featherweight title.
The one-sided victory lead the
way for a five-defense title reign before Lopez moved up to featherweight to
beat defending WBO titlist, Steven Luevano in early 2010. After just two
defenses, though, Juanma ran into old school Mexican pug, Orlando Salido and
was stopped in eight rounds after a thrilling back and forth war in Bayamon,
Puerto Rico.
It was a shocking upset for
someone with such a career trajectory and seemingly unlimited potential for
growth. But for the previous two years, even as Lopez’s resume grew thick with
quality wins, there were signs that Lopez was allowing himself to become
vulnerable.
A tougher-than-expected near
loss to journeyman Rogers Mtagwa and a couple of flat performances gave
credence to rumors that Lopez’s nightlife was interfering with his preparation.
The Salido TKO stopped Lopez’s rise to the top and forced him into efforts to
simply stay afloat.
A second TKO loss to Salido
one year later, also in Puerto Rico, officially ended Lopez’s status as a main
stage, elite fighter. Immediately after the loss, Lopez accused referee Roberto
Ramirez of having a gambling problem that influenced his decision to stop the
fight. The one year suspension issued by the Puerto Rican boxing commission for
that post-fight comment killed off any remaining career momentum Lopez had and
put his professional life into limbo.
The fall of Juanma was a
bitter pill to swallow for many Puerto Rican fight fans, who have been living
through a significant drought in recent years.
At this point, the biggest
Puerto Rican presence in the sport belongs to junior welterweight champ, Danny
Garcia, a fighter born and bred in Philadelphia and as mainstream American as
apple pie.
The wildly popular Miguel
Cotto had managed to gain a measure of revenge against hated one-time
conqueror, Antonio Margarito, but then fell decisively to Floyd Mayweather and
Austin Trout.
Despite high hopes for
Wilfredo Vazquez Jr., the second generation fighter would lose to Jorge Arce,
Nonito Donaire, and Yasutaka Ishimoto en route to proving that, while talented,
he’s simply not an elite talent.
Former world champ, Kermit
Cintron fell to pieces, going 1-3-1 in his last five.
Roman “Rocky” Martinez managed
to win a vacant super featherweight world title and become champ once again,
but has also shown himself to be an infinitely vulnerable titlist with nothing
but split decisions and a draw since taking the belt.
20-something prospects, Luis
Orlando del Valle and Thomas Dulorme were schooled by Vic Darchinyan and Luis
Carlos Abregu, respectively, while the 23-year-old Jonathan Gonzalez barely
managed to score a draw against Serhiy Dzinziruk last September.
Most tragic of all, though,
was news of the murder of Hector Camacho in late 2012. Deeply loved and often
fiercely hated, “Macho” was a legendary figure in Puerto Rican boxing and may
have been the most charismatic presence in the history of the Boricua fight
scene.
While a handful of young
prospects hold the key to a Puerto Rican boxing recovery, nothing would mean
more to the Caribbean fight capital and its followers than a return to glory
for Juan Manuel Lopez.
Still popular and charismatic,
Lopez, now 29, can also still bang and has stopped both of his tune-up
opponents en route to this Saturday’s clash with Garcia.
Not only will this bout offer
Lopez a chance to reclaim the exact same WBO title he lost to Salido, but it
also gives him a chance to gain a measure of indirect revenge by beating the
man who crushed the man who beat him.
For Puerto Rican fight fans, a
Lopez win means a chance to see their flag once again held aloft after a major
world title win and, possibly, the end of their unbearable boxing dry spell. (Source)
