Teofimo Lopez Returns Aug. 13, Versus 34-1-1 Pedro Campa

He promised there would be a “Takeover,” and Teofimo Lopez pretty much lived up to it, when he downed Vasiliy Lomachenko on Oct. 17, 2020. The young gunner’s walk matched his talk on that evening…but the buzz didn’t last as long as he’d have assumed it would, quite likely.

In Teofimo’s next outing, he battled George Kambosos, and just getting to the starting line for that one proved arduous. Team Lopez accepted an offer from Triller to platform the lightweight title defense, but that marriage fizzled out, when the date and site kept getting messed with. A June 5, 2021 playdate got pushed to June 19, so as not to get obscured by a June 6 Floyd Mayweather-Logan Paul exhibition. The June 19 date didn’t come off, because Teofimo Lopez got Covid. And so on, and so forth…Finally, a date and site were selected, with Matchroom acting as the lead promoter, after Triller gave up their rights to showcase the lightweight face-off.

On Nov. 27, 2021, the trajectory of Teofimo Lopez hit a downturn, when the Greek-Aussie knocked him to the mat in round one of their tango.

After 12 rounds, “the Takeover” was over, at least temporarily, with Kambosos snagging a split decision victory.

Teofimo Lopez didn’t agree with the judges, and said so. He didn’t seem to take the loss in stride, publicly anyway, one could say. Now, he will get a chance to hit the re-set button on “the Takeover,” with a bout scheduled for August 13, in Las Vegas, on ESPN, against one Pedro Campa.

Teofimo Lopez, who has taken a fair share of criticism from media and the public alike, is back fully in the fold with promoter Top Rank.

The Las Vegas resident, who grew up in Brooklyn and then Florida, holds a 16-1 mark. The 24 year old will be the favorite on paper heading into the fight with the 30 year old Mexican vet, who debuted as a pro in 2011. Campa owns a 34-1-1 record, and is on a swell streak, 7-0-1 in his last eight. In his last outing, on March 19, Campa scored a TKO3 win over 22-0 Carlos Sanchez Valadez. Lopez represents in theory a significant step-up for Campa.

See Campa in action versus Valadez below:

“I’m thankful to be back August 13. I’ve been looking forward to this since my last fight,” Teofimo Lopez said in a Top Rank release. “I’ve had a lot of complications, but we’re looking towards the future and are on to bigger and better things. I’m here to take over the 140-pound division just like I did at 135. Like always, I’m going to bring excitement to the sport of boxing. The Takeover is still in full effect. You don’t want to miss it.”

Teofimo Lopez v Campa is set for 10 rounds or fewer, and will be supported by a junior middleweight co-feature, pitting Puerto Rican prospect Xander Zayas against Elias “Latin Kid” Espadas.

Lopez-Campa and Zayas-Espadas will be broadcast live on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+ at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. Promoted by Top Rank, tickets starting at $40 go on sale Wednesday, July 13 at 12 p.m. PT and can be purchased at ETix.com.

“I am excited and thankful to Top Rank and Teofimo Lopez for this opportunity. He is a tremendous fighter,” said Campa, a career-long 147/140 pounder. “I am coming to Resorts World Las Vegas ready to implement everything I have learned with my incredible trainer, Manny Robles. We’ve been in Southern California working hard and preparing for the best version of Teofimo Lopez. I believe I can be a force at 140 pounds, and it’s up to me to show that on August 13.”

Zayas is 13-0, 9 KOs, and the 19-year-old from San Juan, Puerto Rico is positioned to possibly give that island a real-deal blue chip type to root for. Espadas (22-4, 15 KOs) is a native of Yucatan, Mexico, who has never been stopped.

In Teofimo Lopez v Campa undercard action, streaming live on ESPN+:

Junior lightweight Andres “Savage” Cortes (17-0, 10 KOs) meets Abraham Montoya (20-3-1, 14 KOs). 2020 U.S. Olympic silver medalist Duke Ragan (6-0, 1 KO), from Cincinnati, Ohio battles D’Angelo Fuentes (7-0, 4 KOs) in a featherweight tussle. Middleweight Troy Isley (6-0, 4 KOs), an Olympic teammate of Ragan’s from the Tokyo Games, fights Victor Toney (6-1-1, 5 KOs). Lightweight Charlie Sheehy (3-0, 3 KOs) and  junior welterweight Omar Rosario (7-0, 2 KOs) will also see action. Featherweight Jose Enrique Vivas (21-2, 11 KOs) takes on Edy Valencia (19-7-6, 7 KOs), as well, in support of Teofimo Lopez v Pedro Campa.