.IBF featherweight champ Luis Alberto Lopez defends his waistband versus Angelo Leo generally activity of a Leading Position on ESPN card at Tingley Col iseum in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on Sunday (ESPN/ESPN+, 10 p.m. ET). Lopez's last loss was in May 2019 and he has succeeded 14 successive matches due to the fact that, including remarkable success over Josh Warrington in England as well as Michael Conlan in Northern Ireland. However is he the most ideal featherweight in boxing?Vasiliy Lomachenko recently refused a profitable fight versus fellow lightweight champ Gervonta "Tank" Davis as well as while he have not announced his retirement, will our team view "Hi-Tech" in the ring again?Canelo Alvarez are going to make his 2nd ring appeal this year, however not against the competitor supporters have demanded. Instead of David Benavidez, Canelo is going to experience Edgar Berlanga, that's never ever combated at this degree in his quick profession. While Berlanga possesses amazing power-- he began his profession along with 16 successive first-round KOs-- can he find a method to win, or even a minimum of go the range versus Alvarez?Former abundant champion Anthony Joshua will certainly fight for a label for the first time in pair of years. Joshua will certainly experience IBF champ Daniel Dubois in London, as "AJ" is actually favored to become a three-time world champ (-550 every ESPN WAGER). And two-division champion Danny Garcia returns to the ring for just the 2nd attend just about four years to take on WBA middleweight champ Erislandy Lara. Garcia, who won belts at 140 and 147 extra pounds, is actually going up in body weight for the odds to come to be a three-division champ, but can easily he disturb a more mature yet still strong Lara?Mike Coppinger and also Chip Parkinson address these concerns as well as even more, trying to differentiate what's genuine as well as what's not.Real or not: Vasiliy Lomachenko will resign without yet another fightNot actual ... in the meantime. Lomachenko is contemplating retirement life, sources told ESPN, portion of the cause he dropped a profitable match with Gervonta Davis in November. There's additionally an opportunity that Lomachenko are going to come back in the 1st one-half of 2025 to defend his IBF light in weight title.After all, Lomachenko (18-3, 12 KOs) showed up in a combating state of mind Saturday in Los Angeles: he and Shakur Stevenson had to be actually divided at ringside in the course of the Terence Crawford-Israil Madrimov memory card. Lomachenko was actually viewed informing Stevenson, "Let's go right now.If that is actually any type of indicator, Lomachenko is going to combat once again. Perhaps even against Davis or even Stevenson, the two largest battles on the desk for him. Yet if he never laces up the handwear covers again, Lomachenko's tradition is actually safeguarded. He's a three-division champ, a first-ballot Venue of Famer as well as a mainstay of the pound-for-pound list over the last 10 years.He likewise doesn't require to eliminate for the money. He is actually gotten millions of dollars in his job and still resides in Ukraine, where he is among the country's most popular athletes. Whether he deals with again, he certainly won't do this a lot longer. He switches 37 in February.-- CoppingerReal or not: Danny Garcia beats Erislandy Lara and ends up being a champion in a third divisionNot real. Garcia has upset the probabilities prior to, consisting of a shocking KO get Amir Khan and a prevalent choice triumph over Lucas Matthysse. The initial gain lifted him to the upper tier of the sporting activity and the last glued that status.But the Matthysse fight was actually 11 years earlier, however, and those 2 signature Garcia success were at 140 pounds (he also gained a headline at 147 extra pounds as well as went up to 154 for a July 2022 get Jose Benavidez Jr.) Garcia (37-3, 21 KOs) is actually still looking for a gain that matches that, and an upset victory over Lara would suit the bill.Garcia failed to be similar to the sharp counterpuncher in the majority-decision victory over Benavidez, as well as he hasn't competed due to the fact that. Now, he'll go up one more weight course (though the Lara match is actually taking place at a catchweight between 155 as well as 160 extra pounds) and must emulate ring lack of exercise. The Sept. 14 middleweight label battle versus Lara will definitely be Garcia's second considering that December 2020, when he was routed by Errol Spence Jr.The choose here is actually Lara (30-3-3, 18 KOs), who, also at 41, presents enormous energy, albeit versus boxers under Garcia's degree. Lara is riding a three-fight KO streak.-- CoppingerReal or not: Canelo Alvarez's match against Edgar Berlanga does not go the distanceCanelo Alvarez, left behind, protects his recognized very middleweight champion versus Edgar Berlanga on Sept. 14 in Sin City. Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu by means of Getty ImagesReal. Alvarez, boxing's top celebrity, have not scored a KO success given that he flattened Caleb Plant in a November 2021 battle to gain the unquestioned tremendously middleweight championship.However, Canelo (61-2-2, 39 KOs) has racked up a knockdown in his last 3 matches. Versus a fighter in Berlanga, that will be actually dealing with on the top amount for the very first time, Alvarez ought to incorporate the 40th KO of his illustrious career.Berlanga (22-0, 17 KOs) has actually been actually harmed in the ring before, such as in a step-up battle versus Marcelo Coceres, who fell him in Round 9. As well as his defense isn't specifically appear. Berlanga has electrical power (he began his job with 16 successive KO gains in the first round), and also if he chooses to exchange along with Canelo, Alvarez needs to take him out.Alvarez promised as a lot at a set of press conference this week to promote the fight.-- Coppinger Real or otherwise: Not one other light champion can hammer Luis Alberto LopezNot real. Rafael Espinoza appears a genuine hazard to Lopez after torturing Sergio Chirinho Sanchez in a four-round succeed in June as well as beating Robeisy Ramirez through a large number choice to succeed the WBO title in December. Espinoza (25-0, 21 KOs) knocked down Chirinho in 3 of the four rounds, while his outbreak succeed with Ramirez was just one of the very best battles in 2023. Editor's Picks1 RelatedAt 6-foot-1, Espinoza-- the tallest globe featherweight champ in background-- would certainly be actually a problem for Lopez. Chirinho prospered to rise from an uppercut coming from Espinoza in Sphere 1, before he was very soon subdued. As a specialist, Chirinho had actually certainly never been actually torn down before Espinoza swept him aside.Espinoza generated a surprise in pounding two-time Olympic gold medallist Ramirez, and he outlanded him in the last 3 spheres. Although he is not as expert as Lopez, the amount of blows he has actually thrown in his last two matches, along with his height as well as get to perks, could possibly show insurmountable for Lopez.Rey Vargas has appeared implausible in latest fights, while our team still need to see even more from Chip Sphere before we proclaim him the division's No. 1. Sphere (20-0-1, 11 KOs) captured the WBA featherweight label along with a split decision win over Raymond Ford in June. That conquest observed a controversial draw versus Vargas for the WBC headline in March. However Espinoza would certainly stand over 5-foot-2 Ball.Vargas was actually unsatisfactory versus Round and also has actually certainly not succeeded in almost two years, so it is actually hard to offer an argument for him in his present form.Lopez (30-2, 17 KOs) is actually the present ESPN No. 1 at featherweight after quiting Reiya Abe in eight spheres in a 3rd defense of the IBF waistband in March. Lopez has eliminated significant difficulties in label battles, like punching in a champion's hometown as well as obtaining cut very early (vs. Josh Warrington), as well as if he succeeds on Saturday against Angelo Leo, he may perhaps face his biggest challenge yet in a label marriage battle versus Espinoza to crown the very best boxer in the department.-- ParkinsonReal or not: Anthony Joshua will KO Daniel DuboisReal. Like Dubois' revival has actually been actually just a year after being actually dropped in Oleksandr Usyk, current type suggests his very first IBF abundant headline defense are going to end in a KO defeat to Joshua.Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) resides in top type, extra therefore than some other heavyweight. Like Dubois (21-2, twenty KOs), Joshua has had to rebuild his career, after going through back-to-back selection reductions to Usyk in 2021 and also 2022. Joshua dealt with cautiously, along with a consensual selection gain Jermaine Franklin in April 2023, yet in his last three matches, he accomplished Robert Helenius, Otto Wallin as well as Francis Ngannou.Dubois returned from Saudi Arabia to Greater london as IBF interim big-time champ after he stopped Filip Hrgovic in Round 8. Usyk then relinquished the IBF belt, which meant Dubois was updated to full champion, and so provides Joshua along with the chance to come to be a three-time globe champ at Wembley Coliseum in London.Joshua will certainly try to manipulate what Hrgovic had actually duplicated effectiveness with versus Dubois. Hrgovic regularly landed right hands on Dubois in the very early arounds, as well as Joshua has displayed in current fights how harmful his right hands seek he damaged Ngannou in Sphere 2. Joshua landed a right-hand man on the former UFC big-time champion's jaw to take him out cool. Joshua will take the chance if Dubois produces himself in a similar way on call, as he carried out versus Hrgovic. Joshua is a greater puncher than Hrgovic and, although Dubois showed toughness to soak up punches in June, he has been actually quit two times (by Joe Joyce in 2020 and also Usyk last year) and also was floored 3 attend the first round by Kevin Lerena before recovering to succeed in Cycle 3. Yet it is no walk in the park for Joshua, that also requires to respect Dubois' power. Dubois ruined Hrgovic's face and may possibly manage a shock standstill versus Joshua, just like Andy Ruiz Jr. carried out in 2019. But Joshua, that ruled as champion coming from 2016 to 2019 and after that coming from 2019 to 2021, is actually more likely to win this fight by KO.-- Parkinson.