David Lopez scores first-round TKO against Marlin Sims

Junior welterweight David Lopez delivered a statement performance on Friday in the OTX 11 show at Corey Studios in Atlanta, stopping Marlin Sims in the first round under unusual circumstances.

Lopez, 20, of Oakland, California, dropped the 32-year-old Sims, from Tampa, Florida, with a right hook in the closing 30 seconds of the round. As Lopez pressed for the stoppage, referee Malik Waleed appeared close to intervening, but the bell rang to end the round (though there was confusion about what happened in the moment). Sims’ corner informed the referee between rounds that their fighter could not continue, resulting in a first-round TKO officially recorded at 3 minutes.

“I want to be an explosive fighter the fans look forward to seeing,” Lopez said postfight.

His father and trainer, Kris Lopez, stated that their goal is to fight 4-6 times in 2025, positioning Lopez for potential Prospect of the Year honors.

Lopez improved to 7-0 (5 KOs), while Sims fell to 8-4 (4 KOs) with his fourth consecutive loss.

Local favorite super middleweight Nathan Lugo, of Marietta, Georgia, extended his knockout streak to three to begin his career with a fourth-round technical knockout over Mardoche Ilunga, of Irving, Texas, at 44 seconds of the round.

Lugo, 24, dominated the first two rounds with aggressive pressure and nearly scored a knockdown at the end of the third when he caught Ilunga with a left hook as he retreated. In the corner, Lugo’s trainer and father, Mike Lugo, urged him to finish the job, saying “scared money doesn’t make money.”

Referee Thomas Taylor halted the bout after Lugo unleashed a barrage of punches, with Ilunga failing to respond (despite not appearing hurt), prompting the stoppage in this four-round fight.

Lugo improved to 3-0 (3 KOs), while Ilunga, 24, fell to 1-1-1 (1 KO).

Lightweight Maliek Montgomery, of Macon, Georgia, missed weight and held a size advantage but still stopped Namibia’s Sakaria Lukas in the fourth round at 1 minute, 40 seconds.

Montgomery, 29, used his power to push Lukas, 40, back in the opening round, and his relentless punch output continued into the second. Both fighters pressed forward, with Lukas stumbling from a flurry of punches before being ruled down in the second round. It could have been called a slip, but Lukas didn’t protest.

Montgomery’s high-volume attack put Lukas down again in the third. A brutal left hook to the body from Montgomery ended the fight in the fourth round, giving Lukas no chance to recover.

Montgomery improved to 20-0 (18 KOs), while Lukas fell to 26-3-1 (18 KOs).

In the opening bout, lightweight Jonathan Mansour, 24, of La Mesa, California, earned a four-round unanimous decision over Luciano Ramos, 29, who trains out of the Nick Diaz Academy. The fight lacked significant action as Mansour controlled the bout tactically. All three judges scored it 40-36.

Mansour improved to 3-0 (1 KO), while Stockton, California’s Ramos, who missed weight by more than three pounds, fell to 2-8. Ramos made a bold entrance, walking out to Limp Bizkit’s “My Way.”

Lucas Ketelle is a proud member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and author of “Inside The Ropes of Boxing” (available on Amazon). Contact him on X @LukieBoxing.