Romero and Lopez ready for WBA title showdown August 22nd
The WBA welterweight title will be on the line August 22nd as Rolando “Rolly” Romero defends the title for the first time against former two division champion Teofimo Lopez. It will be held at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and it will be available on DAZN and Prime Video via PBC Pay-Per-View.
Romero (17-2, 13 KOs) hails from Las Vegas and is one of the most enigmatic figures in the sport. He has won an interim title in the lightweight division, the WBA title in the super lightweight division, and captured the interim WBA welterweight title in his last fight defeating Ryan Garcia by decision last year. After being elevated to full champion, “Rolly” has been eager to step in the ring to show that he can be among the best at 147 pounds. He assumed that he would be fighting earlier this year but it did not work out that way. Now that he is signed to fight Lopez he is happy to get back in the ring.
“It’s been a hard time trying to make a fight, but we know that Teofimo is gonna fight anyone,” Romero said. “I’m thankful that he stepped up to the plate.”
Despite being out of the ring for over a year Romero believes that he will be prepared for Lopez on August 22nd.
“I feel pretty good right now. We’re gonna have to see if I’m even better than I was against Ryan Garcia. I’ve missed boxing. I really don’t do this for anything other than the love of the sport.”
There is history between Romero and Lopez as they have been sparring a few times in the past. While some people may put a lot behind those sessions, Romero says that it is different than fighting under the lights.
“A fight’s a fight, a sparring session is sparring. Everyone’s sparring each other. People get cracked. Now we’re doing it under the big lights for a belt.”
Lopez (22-2, 13 KOs) will have his first fight in the welterweight division after having a run at super lightweight where he became the WBO and lineal champion with a victory over Josh Taylor in 2023. Before that, he was the unified lightweight champion defeating Vasyl Lomachenko in 2021. The Brooklyn native did fall short in his last bout to Shakur Stevenson in January but he looks to bounce back and become a world champion in three divisions. Lopez knows there is a lot on the line in this bout
“It’s put up or shut up,” Lopez said. “We’re at a point in time in my career where everything is at stake. People want to know if this is the start of something new for me, and I look forward to it.”
While he did commend Romero for giving him the opportunity to fight for the WBA welterweight title, he is confident that he will be victorious on August 22nd.
“I want to thank the champ for stepping up to the plate, but I’m looking forward to becoming a three-division world champion at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on August 22nd.”
Teo also addressed the history that he and Romero have, plus noted the importance of this fight as he believes that the winner could be viewed as one of the top fighters in the new generation of the sport.
“We know each other enough to know what triggers us. We know secrets possibly that people don’t know. This is gonna be a big fight for the next era of boxing.”
Will all that is at stake here for this battle, fight fans should expect a good amount of action on August 22nd but there will also be a lot of respect between the two.
“Me and Teo aren’t friends, he’s my little brother,” Romero said. “I’d rather go in there against him than anyone else.”
Photos via Ryan Hafey of Premier Boxing Champions
