Juan Manuel Lopez

Juan Manuel Lopez-Jayson Velez set for September 30 in all-Puerto Rican clash

Juan Manuel Lopez-Jayson Velez set for September 30 in all-Puerto Rican clash

The last time he fought, former two-weight champ Juan Manuel Lopez actually fought twice on the same night. “Juanma,” who returned from a two year layoff last October, this inactive spell coming after two straight (and quite nasty) stoppage losses, beat Wilfredo Vazquez Jr – and after the 11th round TKO win, the Puerto Rican got involved in a fracas with one of Vazquez’ corner-men!

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Yuriorkis Gamboa, Juan Manuel Lopez: Coulda woulda shoulda

Yuriorkis Gamboa, Juan Manuel Lopez: Coulda woulda shoulda

Both electrifying fighters in their prime, Cuba’s Yuriorkis Gamboa and Puerto Rico’s Juan Manuel Lopez seemed to have superstar status ahead of them. Both men managed to win a world championship – in fact both fighters won a couple of belts each – but overall the lofty heights that were expected were never reached.

Today, with both fighters trying to fight on whilst being way past their best (Gamboa recently suffering a shock stoppage defeat at the hands of Robinson Castellanos, “Juanma” having suffered a number of especially gruesome KO defeats) there is a big sense of ‘what if?’

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So, what next for Juan Manuel Lopez?

Former two-weight world champ Juan Manuel Lopez showed over the weekend that when he is matched a certain way, he can still fight and he can still win. The 33-year-old southpaw went to war with his bitter rival Wilfredo Vazquez Jnr this past Saturday in an intense, all-Puerto Rican grudge-match, and he won via exciting 11th-round KO. Juanma was out-boxed in the early going of the fight but his power and sheer determination got him the win in the end.

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Results: Juan Manuel Lopez stops Wilfredo Vazquez Jr

Former two division world champion Juan Manuel Lopez (35-5, 32 KOs) took advantage of an injured former WBO 122lb champion Wilfredo “Papito” Vazquez, Jr. (24-7-1, 19 KOs) to stop him in the 11th round tonight at the Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Vasquez Jr. suffered an eye injury that caused him problems in the 11th. The southpaw Lopez then unloaded on the 32-year-old Vasquez Jr. with a blizzard of punches to put him down on the canvas.

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Juanma Lopez, Wilfredo Vazquez Jnr to settle simmering rivalry tomorrow night

Juanma Lopez, Wilfredo Vazquez Jnr to settle simmering rivalry tomorrow night

Can former champions Juan Manuel Lopez and Wilfredo Vazquez Junior still fight? We may or may not find out tomorrow night when the two meet in a very real and very intense all-Puerto Rican rivalry/grudge-match. Both men are way past what they once were – Juanma suffering some truly X-rated KO defeats over the last two or three years – but the genuine hatred they have for one another just might allow both warriors to raise their game and give fans one final, decent performance.

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Wilfredo Vázquez, Jr. wants to KO Juan Manuel Lopez

Wilfredo Vázquez, Jr. wants to KO Juan Manuel Lopez

This Saturday night’s grudge match between Puerto Rican former world champions Wilfredo “Papito” Vázquez, Jr and Juan Manuel “JuanMa” López is no hype job. Plain and simple, they really dislike each other immensely and both have predicted knockouts in their 12-round Special Attraction showdown, contested at a 129-pound catch-weight, which will air live on pay per view from Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

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Juan Manuel Lopez: Once a warrior always a warrior

Juan Manuel Lopez: Once a warrior always a warrior

The boxing schedule is pretty thin for the month of October, especially now that the world heavyweight title fight rematch between the troubled Tyson Fury and the incredibly frustrated Wladimir Klitschko is off – possibly for good. One former champion who once lit up the lower weight divisions with some truly incredible action will make what could be called a surprising return next month, as Puerto Rican warrior Juan Manuel Lopez will return after a two year layoff.

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Juan Manuel Lopez set to return, face Wilfredo Vazquez Jr in October

Juan Manuel Lopez set to return, face Wilfredo Vazquez Jr in October

Those fans who saw his last two fights will not be happy, but reports from Puerto Rico say Juan Manuel Lopez will return to action in October. The former WBO super-bantamweight and featherweight champion was badly beaten by Francisco Vargas in a 130-pound fight in July of 2014 and then, in September of 2014, “Juanma” was brutally knocked out by Jesus Marcelo Andres Cuellar in a fight that contested the interim WBA belt down at featherweight.

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