On May 2 (May 3 Japan time), the WBO World Super Lightweight Title Unification bout took place at Times Square in New York as part of the “Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves” event, promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Matchroom Boxing. The match featured reigning champion Teofimo Lopez (USA) — 21 wins (13 KOs), 1 loss — against interim champion Arnold Barboza Jr. (USA) — undefeated in 32 fights (11 KOs). Lopez won by decision.
The opening round began with a battle of jabs and occasional fast combinations, but overall it was a quiet start. In round 2, Lopez varied his right straights to the head and body, while Barboza Jr. responded with a right followed by a left straight. In round 3, Barboza Jr. took a low stance with a deep guard, while Lopez, using tricky movements, looked for a chance to leap in with a right straight.
In round 4, Lopez landed a right straight, which Barboza Jr. countered with a right hand of his own and a left hook. In round 5, Lopez initiated with a fast one-two combination. Barboza Jr., focusing on counters, rarely initiated the action himself. In round 6, both fighters continued trying to disrupt each other’s rhythm, cautiously searching for openings. During this exchange, Barboza Jr. landed a sharp counter right straight.
In round 7, Lopez leapt in with a right uppercut followed by a left to the body. Barboza Jr., focused on landing a right-hand counter, hesitated to throw punches. In round 8, the tactical battle continued with both fighters keeping their distance and looking for timing, but Lopez had the higher output. In round 9, as Barboza Jr. applied pressure, Lopez used his unorthodox movement to disrupt him and landed right straights to both the head and body.
In round 10, Barboza Jr. tried to extend his jab and one-two combinations, but Lopez smoothly stepped to the side to evade them and responded with right straights and left hooks. In round 11, Lopez continued his elusive, tricky movements to shut down Barboza Jr.’s offense, landing right straights up and down.
In the final round, Barboza Jr. came forward aggressively but was unable to pin down Lopez. Lopez moved freely and continued to land right straights, maintaining control until the final bell. The official scores were 118-110, 116-112, and 116-112. While the bout lacked excitement, Lopez successfully unified the WBO super lightweight title.
Lopez successfully unified the WBO title, and his future looks exciting!
This article has been translated and published with permission from BOXING MASTER.
https://boxing-master.com/prof/embed/#?secret=x2hdidccEV#?secret=JaONuGYWG5
This article has been translated and published with permission from the original author.
The original content belongs to [Name of author/blog].