LUIS ALBERTO LOPEZ VS JOET GONZALEZ - FIGHT TRENDS AND STATS
One of if not THEE most competitive divisions in world boxing takes centre stage this Saturday and the IBF champ and Ring Magazine number one Luis Alberto Lopez looks to defend the 126lbs crown for the second time against the experienced American Joet Gonzalez.
A relatively unknown quantity outside of the Americas, Lopez burst onto the world scene in emphatic style with back-to-back wins over prospects Gabriel Flores Jr & Isaac Lowe before continuing his fine form with victories over Raul Chirino and Yeison Vargas which put him in the mandatory spot to face the then IBF champ Josh Warrington.
Once again, Lopez proved that he is a man not to be messed with by claiming a majority-decision victory over the Brit and then followed it up with a knockout-of-the-year contender against Michael Conlan in Belfast.
His challenger this time around is the American Joet Gonzalez. Proven at the highest level, Gonzalez is currently 26-3 with his three defeats coming to Shakur Stevenson, Emmanuel Navarrete & Isaac Dogboe, all of whom were either active or former world champions at the time.
It’s setup to be an absolute classic with both proven to have devastating KO power and excellent chins and both more than happy to force the pace when they fight.
Check out the main fight stats below and don’t forget to keep up to date with the latest news and interviews from fight week by following us across all of our social media channels HERE!
Luis Alberto Lopez:
4-2 in title fights
4-0 (3 KOs) when fighting in September
2-0 in world title fights
Hasn’t recorded a 12-fight win streak since his first 12 fights as a pro. He’s currently on an 11-fight win streak
Joet Gonzalez:
0-2 in world title fights
Yet to fight in Texas
2-0 when fighting in September
Hasn’t recorded back-to-back wins since 2019
IBF World Featherweight Title:
Four of the last six holders of the IBF Featherweight Title have defended the belt two or more times. Lopez will become the fifth in the last seven holders