DALLAS (AP) — Mikey Garcia is set for the first defense of his WBO featherweight championship Saturday night against former title-holder Juan Manuel Lopez.
Garcia took the title from Orlando Salido on a unanimous decision in New York in January. The California-born fighter takes a 31-0 record with 26 knockouts into American Airlines Center in Dallas for a bout that Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban helped promote.
The only two losses of Lopez’s career came to Salido. The first one cost him the WBO belt, and the second led to a one-year suspension by Puerto Rican boxing officials when he accused the referee who stopped the fight of betting on the match.
Lopez has won two fights since the ban was lifted. The Puerto Rican is 33-2 with 30 knockouts.
