According to Jamie Conlan of Conlan Boxing (head of Conlan Boxing), talks are ongoing for Luis Alberto Lopez who is the newly crowned IBF featherweight champion to face Michael Conlan in Belfast.
Jamie told Irish News that his brother may potentially face Lopez in May at the SSE Arena or June, possibly in Falls Park. According to the BBC, a date could also be set for April.
“We’re in negotiations,” Jamie Conlan told Irish News. “There are a lot of moving parts but Lopez and Michael is the fight that we’re working towards and we’re close to making and it’s looking more than likely that Belfast will be the place for the fight.”
Lopez won the title last month by winning a twelve-round decision over Josh Warrington at Leeds. Because of injuries sustained during the fight, Lopez would not be physically ready to face Conlan on St Patrick’s Day.
“He is a fantastic world champion,” said Jamie. “He’s a tough night’s work. He is awkward, difficult to prepare for, unorthodox and throws punches from a distance. He’s also heavy-handed from the very first bell to the last. It’s a dangerous fight because he starts so fast.
“Stylistically for Michael it’s a really tough fight but there are no easy fights for titles. Obviously all the talk last year after Michael and Leigh Wood was a rematch but it never materialized, and this is the route that has been presented to us now.”
Conlan tried to capture the WBA title last season, but he was eliminated in dramatic fashion in round 12. He was fighting Leigh Wood in an action fight. Conlan has bounced back with wins over Miguel Marriaga, Karim Guerfi.
“Michael learned a lot from the Wood fight, both in the ring and outside the ring,” said Jamie. “I think he’s shown that in the two fights since in how he’s dealt with hurting someone early and getting them out of there (Guerfi) and the way he dealt with understanding distance against a big power-puncher like Marriaga.
“He has learned a lot and I think learning that was probably the final piece of the puzzle to becoming a world champion. He learned it the hard way in the Wood fight but it’s all behind him now and it’ll do him the world of good coming into this world title fight.”