Lopez outpoints Ortiz to retain super-lightweight world title

Teofimo Lopez successfully defended his title in Las Vegas

Teofimo Lopez unanimously outpointed Jamaine Ortiz to retain the WBO super-lightweight world title in Las Vegas on Thursday night.

Judge Steve Weisfeld scored the fight 117-111, while Tim Cheathem and David Sutherland both had it 115-113, an announcement met by a roar of boos from an announced crowd of 6,206 at Michelob Ultra Arena.

Lopez (20-1, 13 KOs) was making his first defence of his title and was stepping into the ring for the first time since June, when he beat Josh Taylor by way of a unanimous decision, with the American calling out Terence Crawford after his victory.

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“I am champion. I am king,” Lopez said. “Glory is next for me. None of these guys want to fight me. I’ll fight (Terence) Crawford at a catchweight. I’m here. I’m ready. I’ve always been ready. I’m younger, prettier, and a two-time unified champion at 25.”

Lopez opened the match fighting downhill, forcing himself upon Ortiz (17-2-1), who was fighting in his first world title match and appeared prepared to challenge Lopez after vowing to knock him out, but then spent much of the fight back peddling.

By the start of the seventh, the left side of Ortiz’s face began to swell. Making matters worse for him, a clash of heads left Ortiz bleeding near his left eye a little more than one minute into the round.

The eighth and ninth rounds were more than frustrating for Lopez, who spent more time chasing Ortiz than fighting him. Ortiz, on the other hand, landed timely counters, getting in and out of combinations to stave off Lopez’s pursuit.

“We cannot for one second claim these people, these fighters that don’t want to come and fight,” Lopez said. “I am a champion. I bleed for this, I sweat for this, and I cry for this every time.”

It wouldn’t be until the 12th round that a steady stream of action with both fighters delivering combinations, Lopez walking through punches to land his own and Ortiz firing back while still moving around the ring.

Lopez landed 78 of 384 punches thrown (21 per cent), two fewer than his opponent from 409 punches (20 per cent), with Ortiz disappointed not to get the result.

“I believe I won the fight,” Ortiz said. “What can I say, I came out on the short end of the stick once again. He couldn’t hit me…he wasn’t landing any shots on me.”

Davis eyes Lopez clash after stopping Pedraza

In the co-main event, a scheduled 10-round lightweight bout, American Olympic silver medallist Keyshawn Davis stopped former Puerto Rican two-division world champion Jose Pedraza with a sixth-round TKO.

Davis (10-0, 7 KOs) began imposing his will in the third round, landing thunderous combinations to both Pedraza’s head and body. He appeared to do most of his damage with straight shots to the face, but Davis inflicted most of his punishment with continuous shots to the body in ensuing rounds.

“Throughout this whole training camp, I’ve been saying that I’m the best at 135,” Davis said. “Everyone kept saying, You’ve got to get the stoppage. You’ve got to get the knockout.’ But I told everyone to not worry about it and just watch me work. And that’s exactly what happened. I got the stoppage.”

Now, Davis has his sights set on Lopez.

“Teofimo has been doing a lot of talking lately,” Davis added. “I’ll go up to 140 and fight Teofimo. What’s up? You already know how I’m coming. You and your father. So let’s set it up. I’ll come straight to 140. Let’s go.

“And if you’re scared Teofimo, then (Emanuel) Navarrete. He is a great fighter. He is a hell of a fighter. It would be an honor to get in the ring with you after you capture the WBO title. So let’s do it.”

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Teofimo Lopez, right, connects with a punch to Jamaine Ortiz during a boxing bout Thursday, Feb. 8, 2024, in Las Vegas. (Steve Marcus/Las Vegas Sun via AP)

Teofimo Lopez (right) saw his win greeted by boos after his unanimous decision victory