Teofimo Lopez vs Arnold Barboza Jr Preview May 2nd, 2025
Current Ring Magazine, Lineal and WBO Junior Welterweight Champion Teofimo Lopez of Brooklyn, New York defends his titles against unbeaten Arnold Barboza Jr of Long Beach, California this Friday, May 2nd. The 12-rounder from Times Square in New York City can be seen live in most nations on DAZN pay-per-view. Lopez was last in the ring in June when he beat Steve Claggett by a wide unanimous decision. Lopez edged Josh Taylor in June, 2023 the WBO and Ring Titles and is also a former WBA Super World, IBF, WBO, and Ring Magazine World Lightweight Champion. Before meeting Claggett, he defended his Junior Welterweight Belt via a controversial unanimous decision over Jamaine Ortiz. Barboza last fought in November when he beat Jack Catterall via a split decision on the road in England for the vacant WBO Interim Junior Welterweight belt. In his previous fight three months earlier he beat former world champion Jose Ramirez via a 10-round unanimous decision.
Lopez vs Barboza Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Arnold Barboza +200
- Teofimo Lopez -260
My Pick
The 27-year-old Lopez climbs into the ring with a mark of 21-1 with 13 Ko’s and is former multiple world title holder who also held the NABF, WBC Continental Americas, USBA, and NABA-USA Lightweight Belts earlier in his career. Lopez originally won the WBA and WBO Lightweight Titles in October, 2020 when he beat a rather tame-looking Vasyl Lomachenko by a somewhat controversial unanimous decision and had won the IBF belt 10 months earlier when he stopped Richard Commey in the second round.
However, he lost a split decision and all of his titles to George Kambosos Jr in his first defence in November, 2021 in a fight which saw Lopez down in the first round and Kambosos on the deck in the 10th. Lopez is regarded as one of the sport’s top prospects due to his whirlwind, non-stop style and power but struggled against Masayoshi Nakatani in July 2019 as well as against Lomachenko in the last half of their fight and also against Sandor Martin in another controversial win, this time by split decision over 10 rounds in December, 2022.
Lopez owns better-than-average power as 61.9 per cent of his wins have come by stoppage but he’s gone the distance in four straight fights and six of the past seven. Lopez isn’t really a one-punch KO artist even though he nailed Richard Commey perfectly in the second round of their December, 2019 bout to win the IBF crown. He typically stops opponents with the sheer volume of punches he throws rather than with just one shot. Lopez stands 5-feet-9-inches tall with a 68.5-inch and has 137 rounds of experience under his belt since making his pro debut in November, 2016.
He enjoyed a fine amateur career and fought for Honduras at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil where he lost in the first round of competition. He’s also a former national Golden Gloves Champion and has had no problem adapting to pro boxing. Lopez has also beaten the likes of Edis Tatli, Diego Magdaleno, Mason Menard, William Silva, Vitor Jones, Juan Pablo Sanchez and Francisco Medel.
Barboza is 33 years old and climbs into the ring with a perfect mark of 32-0 with 11 Ko’s. He’s boxed 210 rounds since making his pro debut in 2013 following a brief amateur career. He measures 5-feet-9-inches tall with a 72-inch so is the same height as Lopez but has a 3.5-inch reach advantage. When it comes to power, Barboza is below average with a current knockout ratio of just 34.4 per cent and has gone the distance in eight of his last nine fights after stopping four of his previous five opponents.
Since turning pro after a short amateur career, Barboza has also won the vacant WBO International and NABF Jr Super Lightweight Titles. He’s beaten Mike Alvarado, Tony Luis, William Silva and Antonio Moran along the way but is probably best known for his slugfest against Alex Saucedo in October, 2020 when he was dropped in the seventh round but came back to win a 10-round unanimous decision to win the vacant WBO International Super Lightweight Belt.
Prediction…
Lopez has been inconsistent over the past few years as he either struggles mightily or appears to be unbeatable but he does possess enough power to stop a fight with one shot. Barboza is six years older and lacks power but has a pretty good chin. He’s certainly not the most exciting boxer out there but has a style that’s proven to be a thorn in everybody’s side. Lopez often fights to the level of his opponent and if that happens I’m expecting Barboza to pull off a mild upset here due to his non-aggressive style.
Barboza’s defensive style could result in an upset.
Play Barboza Jr. +200 @ BetOnline.ag
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Arnold Barboza Jr betting • Teofimo Lopez betting