"Its a fight made for Canelo" - Teofimo Lopez on Canelo Alvarez vs. Dmitry Bivol
Teofimo Lopez believes Canelo will emerge victorious against Dmitry Bivol because the Russian's style is tailor-made for him. Alvarez and Bivol are scheduled to fight on May 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The WBA Light Heavyweight Championship will be on the line, and the Mexican will attempt to become the first man to defeat the Russian in his professional career.
Here's what Lopez said in an interview with Fight Hub TV:
"I see Canelo just outlanding and outboxing him. Bivol is a tricky dude but he's very solid tight and he likes guys like that. He did it with Callum Smith, even though Smith was tall, he was boxed up like this to the point where Canelo just went around and clipped him. It's a fight made for him; not saying its fixed, its a great fight but it favors him because of his style."
Watch Teofimo Lopez's full interview with Fight Hub TV below:
Teofimo Lopez gives Dmitry Bivol a chance against Canelo
Despite favoring the Mexican superstar, Lopez wouldn't be surprised if the Russian sprung an upset on May 7. 'The Takeover' compares Alvarez to Floyd Mayweather and how the undefeated champion also struggled with awkward opponents. During the same interview, he continued:
"It would not surprise me because this guy [Bivol] is a little tricky, awkward. Awkward fighters throw a lot of the most stylistic fighters off... Floyd was never good with awkward fighters. He maintained it but it was very hard to deal with. [Marcos] Maidana is an example of what an awkward fighter is."
It remains to be seen if Bivol can cause the Mexican serious issues in their upcoming bout. Alvarez has recently beaten skilled boxers such as Plant and Billy Joe Saunders. In the past, however, he struggled with Erislandy Lara and famously got outboxed by Mayweather Jr. back in 2013.
Bivol is an esteemed amateur who won a gold medal at the 2013 World Combat Games. Since turning professional, he has defeated top-quality opponents such as Joe Smith Jr. and Isaac Chilemba.
Watch the highlights of Alvarez's last fight against Caleb Plant: