On Tuesday, it was made official that WBA and WBO lightweight champion Vasiliy Lomachecko will meet IBF titleholder Teofimo Lopez for a unification fight on Saturday, Oct. 17 from the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
The contest is one of the biggest fights of the year. But the question is, who wins? Does Lomachecko show why some boxing pundits regard him as the premier fighter in the sport? Or can the 23-year-old Lopez storm right in and take the mantle from the guy who is viewed by some as unbeatable?
In the latest episode of "Jabs", hosts Todd Grisham and Sergio Mora disagree over who emerges victorious. Mora compares the contest to a pair of fights involving multi-time world champion Felix Trinidad and feels it's a little bit too soon for Lopez.
"The pound-for-pound No. 1 fighter in the world," Mora said. "I got to go with 'Hi-Tech' Lomachenko. This will remind me of an old bull-young bull situation, which we see a lot in boxing. It reminds of (Felix) Trinidad with either David Reid or when he fought Fernando Vargas, both of them Trinidad won. He went the distance and beat down David Reid and the other one, he actually stopped and beat down and knocked out Fernando Vargas.
"It was too much, too soon for young champions. I think that's exactly what will happen with Teofimo Lopez. He's a young, strong, hungry bull and a world champion. But he's dealing with a three-division world champion, a two-time (Olympic) gold medalist, a world champion since his third pro fight. There's stages to this. I think it will be too much for this young bull to bite off. We know Lomachenko is more than just old-bull mentality. He fights and has the brilliant moves of a matador. You're dealing with an old bull with matador moves. Lomachenko is too much at this point, in my opinion."
Grisham countered Mora by going back to how some people overlooked Lopez in his fight against Richard Commey in December after a lackluster showing in August with Masayoshi Nakatani and used everyone doubting him as motivation in the future. Then Grisham went back to the first time he saw Lopez, and what he said that left a lasting impression.
"Two fights ago, Teofimo Lopez fought Masayoshi Nakatani. He didn't look great. He won by unanimous decision. He was supposed to fight Richard Commey next. Tim Bradley, ESPN's own commentator, said there's no way in hell that he's ready for Commey yet. But guess what, they threw him in there, and he completely blitzed him and looked like one of the greatest fighters in the history world. Underestimate this guy at your peril. ...
"I was calling a fight three years ago in Carson, California, at the outdoor stadium. This young kid comes up and introduces himself. He says, 'Hi, my name is Teofimo Lopez. Do you know who I am?'
"I said, 'I'm sorry I don't.' He said, 'Get to know my name. I'll be a world champion soon.' I've called a thousand fights. No one has ever done that to me. I'm taking Teofimo Lopez and his confidence in one of the biggest upsets of the year."
Watch the full "Jabs" video above or on DAZN's YouTube channel.