Oscar De La Hoya Already weighed Teofimo Lopez and Shakur Stevensonbelieves that Lopez has the opportunity to do the “impossible” and “break” the opponent’s style.

The two will collide at Madison Square Garden in New York City on January 31Stevenson seeks to capture his opponent’s WBO title and become a four-division world champion.

So far, the crafty southpaw, who still holds the WBC title at 135 pounds, appears to be slightly favored in their super lightweight bout.

After all, Stevenson barely lost a fight as a pro, with his most notable wins coming against world-class players William Zepeda, Oscar Valdez and Jamel Herring.

Most importantly, it was the American’s lead and expert judgment of distance that allowed him to achieve such great success.

While Stevenson has certainly enjoyed greater consistency in recent years, it must also be said that Lopez has two of the most important wins.

In fact, these were two of the best performances of his career, Witness the ‘takeover’ that deposed Vasily Lomachenko and Josh Taylor, who won the title in 2020 and 2023 respectively, and his recent performance made him a world champion at 140 pounds.

Based on that, De La Hoya believes Lopez can solve nightmarish problems in the style of Stevenson, despite Lopez’s less-than-impressive performances against the likes of Xander Martin and Jermain Ortiz.

talk with battle center tvthe Golden Boy promoter welcomed both fighters but ultimately declined to give a clear prediction.

“Teo is a great fighter. I love Teo, but I (also) love Shakur. (Stevenson’s) style is almost impossible to break. But if there’s one fighter who can break it, it’s Teo.

I like Shakur because he can’t run – he’s right in front of you – so Teo should do something. But I think it’s going to be a great fight. “

Lopez’s explosiveness and athleticism will certainly cause problems for Stevenson, but vice versa, as will the Newark native’s prolific jab and disciplined footwork.