.IBF featherweight champ Luis Alberto Lopez defends his waistband versus Angelo Leo generally occasion of a Leading Rank on ESPN card at Tingley Col iseum in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on Sunday (ESPN/ESPN+, 10 p.m. ET). Lopez's last reduction remained in May 2019 as well as he has actually won 14 consecutive battles since, consisting of impressive triumphes over Josh Warrington in England and also Michael Conlan in Northern Ireland. But is he the most effective featherweight in boxing?Vasiliy Lomachenko just recently declined a financially rewarding match against fellow light-weight champion Gervonta "Tank" Davis as well as while he have not declared his retired life, are going to our experts see "Hi-Tech" in the band again?Canelo Alvarez will definitely create his second ring appearance this year, yet not against the boxer followers have demanded. As Opposed To David Benavidez, Canelo will certainly deal with Edgar Berlanga, that is actually never dealt with at this amount in his brief career. While Berlanga possesses fabulous electrical power-- he started his job with 16 successive first-round KOs-- can he find a means to succeed, or even at least go the distance against Alvarez?Former abundant champ Anthony Joshua will definitely defend a headline for the very first time in two years. Joshua is going to face IBF champion Daniel Dubois in Greater London, as "AJ" is chosen to come to be a three-time globe champion (-550 per ESPN WAGER). As well as two-division champion Danny Garcia returns to the ring for only the 2nd attend almost four years to take on WBA middleweight champion Erislandy Lara. Garcia, that succeeded waistbands at 140 and also 147 pounds, is going up in weight for the odds to come to be a three-division champion, however may he upset a much older however still strong Lara?Mike Coppinger as well as Nick Parkinson answer these questions as well as even more, attempting to differentiate what's actual as well as what is actually not.Real or otherwise: Vasiliy Lomachenko are going to resign without another fightNot true ... in the meantime. Lomachenko is actually contemplating retirement life, sources informed ESPN, part of the factor he dropped a highly profitable match along with Gervonta Davis in Nov. There's likewise an option that Lomachenko are going to return in the very first one-half of 2025 to safeguard his IBF light in weight title.After all, Lomachenko (18-3, 12 KOs) appeared in a fighting state of mind Saturday in Los Angeles: he and Shakur Stevenson needed to be actually separated at ringside in the course of the Terence Crawford-Israil Madrimov memory card. Lomachenko was actually seen telling Stevenson, "Let's go ideal now.If that is actually any type of sign, Lomachenko will definitely battle once more. Maybe even versus Davis or Stevenson, both most significant matches on the desk for him. However if he never laces up the gloves again, Lomachenko's tradition is actually gotten. He is actually a three-division champ, a first-ballot Venue of Famer and a pillar of the pound-for-pound listing over the last 10 years.He additionally doesn't need to overcome for the money. He's earned numerous bucks in his job as well as still stays in Ukraine, where he is just one of the nation's most preferred professional athletes. Whether he battles once again, he surely won't do so a lot longer. He turns 37 in February.-- CoppingerReal or not: Danny Garcia beats Erislandy Lara and also ends up being a champion in a third divisionNot real. Garcia has outplayed the probabilities before, featuring a shocking KO sway Amir Khan as well as a dominant decision victory over Lucas Matthysse. The 1st win raised him to the higher echelon of the sporting activity and the latter sealed that status.But the Matthysse battle was actually 11 years earlier, though, as well as those two signature Garcia success were at 140 pounds (he also succeeded a headline at 147 pounds and went up to 154 for a July 2022 sway Jose Benavidez Jr.) Garcia (37-3, 21 KOs) is still searching for a win that matches that, and a dismayed victory over Lara would certainly match the bill.Garcia didn't be similar to the sharp counterpuncher in the majority-decision success over Benavidez, and also he have not competed since. Currently, he'll move up another body weight training class (though the Lara fight is happening at a catchweight between 155 and also 160 extra pounds) and also have to contend with ring inactivity. The Sept. 14 middleweight headline match versus Lara will definitely be actually Garcia's second because December 2020, when he was transmitted through Errol Spence Jr.The pick here is Lara (30-3-3, 18 KOs), that, also at 41, shows significant electrical power, albeit versus competitors under Garcia's amount. Lara is using a three-fight KO streak.-- CoppingerReal or not: Canelo Alvarez's fight versus Edgar Berlanga doesn't go the distanceCanelo Alvarez, left behind, protects his uncontested incredibly middleweight championship versus Edgar Berlanga on Sept. 14 in Sin City. Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu by means of Getty ImagesReal. Alvarez, boxing's top star, have not scored a KO success since he smoothed Caleb Vegetation in a Nov 2021 battle to succeed the undisputed tremendously middleweight championship.However, Canelo (61-2-2, 39 KOs) has racked up a knockdown in his final three fights. Versus a boxer in Berlanga, who will definitely be dealing with on the top level for the first time, Alvarez ought to add the 40th KO of his renowned career.Berlanga (22-0, 17 KOs) has actually been hurt in the ring previously, particularly in a step-up fight against Marcelo Coceres, that lost him in Round 9. And his protection isn't specifically appear. Berlanga possesses electrical power (he began his job along with 16 successive KO wins in the preliminary), and if he opts for to exchange with Canelo, Alvarez should take him out.Alvarez vowed as a lot at a pair of news conferences today to promote the match.-- Coppinger Real or not: Nothing else lightweight champion can easily beat Luis Alberto LopezNot real. Rafael Espinoza looks a real hazard to Lopez after tormenting Sergio Chirinho Sanchez in a four-round succeed in June as well as defeating Robeisy Ramirez through a bulk selection to win the WBO title in December. Espinoza (25-0, 21 KOs) defeated Chirinho in 3 of the four rounds, while his outbreak win along with Ramirez was just one of the greatest matches in 2023. Publisher's Picks1 RelatedAt 6-foot-1, Espinoza-- the highest planet featherweight champion in record-- would be a problem for Lopez. Chirinho did well to get up from an uppercut coming from Espinoza in Sphere 1, prior to he was actually very soon subdued. As a qualified, Chirinho had actually never been brought down just before Espinoza swept him aside.Espinoza created a shock in beating two-time Olympic gold medallist Ramirez, and also he outlanded him in the final three arounds. Although he is not as professional as Lopez, the amount of blows he has thrown in his last 2 battles, alongside his elevation and also hit perks, could possibly verify impossible for Lopez.Rey Vargas has actually appeared unconvincing in latest matches, while our experts still need to find extra coming from Chip Round before our team declare him the branch's No. 1. Sphere (20-0-1, 11 KOs) caught the WBA featherweight headline with a split choice win over Raymond Ford in June. That victory followed a controversial draw versus Vargas for the WBC label in March. Yet Espinoza would overlook 5-foot-2 Ball.Vargas was actually unsatisfactory versus Round as well as has actually certainly not won in almost two years, so it is challenging to provide a disagreement for him in his current form.Lopez (30-2, 17 KOs) is the current ESPN No. 1 at featherweight after stopping Reiya Abe in eight spheres in a third self defense of the IBF belt in March. Lopez has actually overcome major problems in title fights, like punching in a champion's home town as well as acquiring cut very early (vs. Josh Warrington), as well as if he gains on Saturday against Angelo Leo, he may perhaps face his biggest problem but in a headline marriage battle versus Espinoza to dental crown the most ideal competitor in the division.-- ParkinsonReal or otherwise: Anthony Joshua will definitely KO Daniel DuboisReal. As good as Dubois' resurgence has actually been merely a year after being come by Oleksandr Usyk, recent type proposes his first IBF abundant title self defense will definitely end in a KO loss to Joshua.Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs) resides in best kind, more thus than some other heavyweight. Like Dubois (21-2, 20 KOs), Joshua has actually needed to reconstruct his job, after experiencing next selection losses to Usyk in 2021 and 2022. Joshua battled meticulously, along with a consentaneous decision gain Jermaine Franklin in April 2023, but in his final three matches, he finished off Robert Helenius, Otto Wallin and also Francis Ngannou.Dubois came back from Saudi Arabia to Greater london as IBF interim big-time champion after he stopped Filip Hrgovic in Around 8. Usyk then relinquished the IBF waistband, which suggested Dubois was updated to complete champ, and so shows Joshua along with the option to come to be a three-time globe champ at Wembley Stadium in London.Joshua will certainly attempt to exploit what Hrgovic had repeated excellence with against Dubois. Hrgovic continuously landed right hands on Dubois in the very early arounds, and also Joshua has displayed in current fights exactly how harmful his right-hand men are after he destroyed Ngannou in Sphere 2. Joshua landed a right hand on the previous UFC big-time champion's chin to knock him out cool. Joshua is going to confiscate the option if Dubois produces himself likewise available, as he performed versus Hrgovic. Joshua is a greater puncher than Hrgovic and also, although Dubois presented toughness to soak up punches in June, he has actually been quit two times (by Joe Joyce in 2020 and Usyk last year) and was actually floored 3 attend the preliminary by Kevin Lerena just before recouping to gain in Round 3. Yet it is actually no stroll in the playground for Joshua, that likewise needs to respect Dubois' electrical power. Dubois pauperized Hrgovic's face and may possibly pull off a surprise stop against Joshua, much like Andy Ruiz Jr. did in 2019. However Joshua, who ruled as champion coming from 2016 to 2019 and afterwards coming from 2019 to 2021, is actually more probable to succeed this match through KO.-- Parkinson.