Luis Alberto Lopez vs Joet Gonzalez fight prediction, undercard, odds, preview, start time, how to watch

Over his last six fights, Joet Gonzalez has lost three times, with two of those losses coming in world title bouts. On Friday, he steps into the ring to challenge for another belt when he takes on IBF featherweight champion Luis Alberto Lopez in Corpus Christi, Texas.

That Gonzalez getting another title fight is certainly strange, but these situations tend to crop up in boxing where rankings and odds are often changed by who a fighter is affiliated with in promotions.

After an impressive 23-0 start to his career, Gonzalez was completely outclassed by Shakur Stevenson in an October 2019 bout for the WBO featherweight title. After winning right in his next round, Gonzalez fought again for the WBO belt, this time dropping the October 2021 decision to Emanuel Navarrete. Again, he picked up a win before competing, this time losing a split decision to Isaac Dogboe in a WBO title eliminator.

Gonzalez returned to the win column in April with a decision win over Enrique Vivas and now holds the WBO’s No. 1 ranking despite his 3-3 record over the past four years. gone.

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IBF champion Lopez defends his belt against Gonzalez despite Reiya Abe becoming an IBF mandatory challenger with a win over Kiko Martinez in a title eliminator in April.

Lopez is riding an 11-fight winning streak. He captured the IBF belt in his first appearance at a world title, earning a majority decision over Josh Warrington. Lopez then took less than five full rounds to make the first defense of his title, stopping Michael Conlan in May.

With a win over Gonzalez, Lopez will likely look to end the year by facing Abe to clear the one-year bar to face a mandatory challenger as set. with the IBF, although he will also have an eye on the clash in October between the WBA champion. Leigh Wood and Warrington and a possible merger down the road.

The undercard sees a couple of rising prospects that want to make a splash. Xander Zayas is back in a super welterweight contest against Roberto Valenzuela Jr. in the co-main event. The undefeated 21-year-old is 16-0 since turning pro in 2019 after a successful amateur run. Additionally, Jamaine Ortiz is back in a lightweight contest facing Antonio Moran.

Let’s take a closer look at the full card before we get to predictions and expert picks for the main event.

Lopez vs Gonzalez fight card, weird

Prediction

Gonzalez may not “deserve” this title fight, but he is a solid action fighter who can be trusted in a decent televised main event. Lopez seems just too good for Gonzalez here. Stylistically, Lopez is difficult, fighting against rhythm compared to what you might expect. Lopez leaves openings for his opponent to hook but his tempo and rhythm often keep opponents from pulling the trigger effectively. Gonzalez will have his hands full trying to figure out that rhythm while also dealing with Lopez throwing shots from unusual angles and with unorthodox combinations. Pick: Luis Alberto Lopez via UD