Teofimo Lopez vs Brian Norman Jr. Possible for WBO Title at 147
A potential fight in the welterweight division featuring undefeated Brian “The Assassin II” Norman Jr. (26-0, 20KO) and WBO junior welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez (20-1, 13KO) could be on the horizon. In addition, the two Top Rank fighters may battle for the WBO welterweight title.
Norman is coming off as a candidate for knockout of the year against Giovanni Santillan on May 18. Santillan grabbed the number one spot by the WBO along with the interim title after upsetting Alexis Rocha in October 2023.
HOW THINGS COULD PLAY OUT
The Assassin crushed the Californian’s hopes of competing for a title with a left uppercut that ended the fight in the tenth round. Now the owner of the WBO interim title, Norman is in line for a title shot. He could get elevated to full champion with unified welterweight champion Terence Crawford facing WBA junior middleweight champion Israil Madrimov.
If Crawford is victorious, per WBO rules, a champion is forbidden to hold belts in multiple divisions. This means the Nebraskan could vacate the title. Here is where The Takeover comes into the picture. Lopez is set to defend his WBO title against Steve Claggett on June 29.
Providing a victory, Lopez, as WBO champion in another division, can move up and challenge Norman for the vacant title. The Takeover would jump at the opportunity to become a three-division world champion as he was hoping to fight Crawford.
Norman versus Lopez may not have been part of Top Rank’s original plan, as this author thought the WBO champion was going to fight Santillan for the title. However, The Assassin may have punched his way into a big fight in 2024.
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