Former champ turned commentator Tim Bradley is super excited about a fight that has been talked about and could happen either this year or maybe next year. Jaron “Boots” Ennis against Teofimo Lopez is a fight that Lopez himself has said “is gonna happen,” while Ennis’s promoter Eddie Hearn says talks are a thing, the fight at least a possibility for August of this year.
And Bradley, speaking on his YouTube channel, said that Ennis, who is 34-0(30) and is the reigning WBA and IBF welterweight champion, and Lopez, who is 22-1(13) and is the current WBO champ at 140 pounds, are “the two most athletic fighters in the game.”
Bradley says Lopez has the edge if his head is right
Bradley sees a great fight, a very evenly matched fight, if this one goes down. But Bradley would give the edge to Lopez “if his mind’s right.”
“The two most athletic fighters in the game. Damn. If they was to go head-to-head,” Bradley began. “Yeah, Boots got all the attributes, the height, the long arms. But you know who’s got the timing? That’s Teofimo Lopez. Who was the last athletic guy that Boots fought? Karen [Chukhadzhian]? Don’t think that Boots gonna be able to outpunch him. Go back and watch the [Steve] Claggett fight, Teofimo got lungs too. He threw almost 1,000 punches in that fight. Boots, all these lapses that you be having, you ain’t gonna be able to have them with Teofimo Lopez. That dude is on his game. When his mind’s right, it’s hard to beat that dude.”
Will Hearn protect Ennis or roll the dice?
Bradley, who also pointed out to Ennis that Lopez has “high IQ as well as you do,” signed off by advising Eddie Hearn, who promotes Ennis, to keep his fighter away from Lopez unless he wants to see Boots get beaten.
Bradley is a smart analyst, and when he says he sees a testing fight for Boots here, a very testing fight, we should listen. Lopez, who previously ruled as the world lightweight champion, has looked special in some of his fights, less so in others. If Teofimo can get his mind right as he goes into a fight with Ennis, who wins? It sounds as though Bradley feels Lopez would come out on top. Let’s see if this fascinating match-up gets made, either this year or next.
If it does, who do you like – Boots or The Takeover? New York or Philadelphia?
