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Mike Coppinger, ESPN
Luis Alberto Lopez will defend his IBF featherweight title vs. Joet Gonzalez on Sept. 15 in Corpus Christi, Texas, sources told ESPN.
Lopez, ESPN’s top boxer at 126 pounds, will headline a “Top Rank on ESPN” show for the first time in the U.S.
The 29-year-old from Mexico won the title with a majority-decision victory over Josh Warrington in December and retained the belt with a brutal fifth-round TKO of Michael Conlan in May. Both bouts took place in the U.K.
Lopez (28-2, 16 KOs) has won 11 fights since a 2019 decision defeat to Ruben Villa. Now, Lopez will meet a fellow action fighter in Gonzalez, 29, who fights out of Los Angeles.
Two of Gonzalez’s three defeats came via decision in title challenges (against Emanuel Navarrete and Shakur Stevenson). Gonzalez (26-3, 15 KOs) also dropped a decision to Isaac Dogboe last year.
Source: www.espn.com