The unlikely success story of Luis Alberto Lopez

Luis Alberto Lopez is a great fighter – there, we said it – but if you prefer a little flair, let’s call him the “Boo-Loving Brawler” instead of the “Road Warrior”.

The featherweight’s 10th-round knockout loss to Angelo Leo in Leo’s hometown of Albuquerque, N.M., adds another tough opponent to his collection. It proves one thing: Lopez has no problem stepping into hostile territory and hearing the boos. In fact, he might even savor it.

Lopez (30-3, 17 KOs), from Mexicali, Mexico, had a run that should be remembered, and while the win gives Leo a nice boost up the ladder, for Lopez, it’s time to rethink things.

So how did Lopez become such a fantastic underdog story? He defied the system. His co-manager, Hector Fernandez de Cordova, puts it simply: “No one ever expected anything from us. Every single time we went on the road, it wasn’t because they thought we could win. Every win we got on the road was because they thought we were an easy opponent.”

While most might find it daunting going on the road Lopez embraced it as it showed in his attitude in the ring. According to Fernandez, “It was a ‘fuck you’ attitude. Every single time we got an offer for a fight somewhere else, even for this last fight with Angelo Leo, we were supposed to fight in Arizona. When they chose the opponent, Angelo Leo, they took us to New Mexico. Every single time we made an offer to Venado, his attitude was like, ‘Fuck you. I’m going to show them what I’m about. Fuck them, fuck the opponent, fuck everyone.”

In today’s boxing world, two losses can feel like the end of the line. The politics don’t favor the underdog, and confidence takes a nosedive when the clear path to a title looks more like a maze. After his second loss to Ruben Villa on ShoBox: The Next Generation in May 2019, Lopez was starting to look like a gatekeeper at junior lightweight – a role that’s about as glamorous as it sounds. Lopez, ever the contrarian, had other plans. Two fights later, he delivered a fifth-round technical knockout to undefeated Golden Boy Promotions prospect Cristian Baez while fighting at lightweight. Then, post-pandemic, he took on Andy Vences in July 2020, a Top Rank fighter from San Jose with only one loss to Albert Bell. Lopez won a split decision.

The real turning point came over a year later when he delivered a one-sided unanimous decision against Gabriel Flores Jr., once the youngest fighter to sign with Top Rank. Lopez didn’t just win – he did it with reckless abandon, taunting Flores in the ring like he was auditioning for a villain role in a movie. After the Flores win, Lopez decided featherweight was his new playground, despite his junior lightweight and lightweight wins.

Lopez’s style is also notable for its awkwardness – his chin often in the air, rarely using a jab. Where did Lopez learn this? Well, the streets of Mexico, which was a great proving ground. 

“He was actually in the streets,” Fernandez said. “He found pretty much street rehabilitation in the gym. When people ask me, how did you get that awkward style, it’s because he literally learned how to fight in the streets. There’s no technique, there’s no jab, there’s no fundamentals behind his boxing, but it worked. So his imperfections, he made them perfect to his own style.”

Lopez then headed to York Hall in England to face Isaac Lowe, best known as Tyson Fury’s pal. Lopez didn’t just beat Lowe – he dropped him in the first and second rounds and finished the job in the seventh with a body shot. Just to keep things interesting, he wasn’t content with beating A-side fighters at home – he was now doing it abroad.

Two fights later, Lopez took on IBF featherweight titleholder Josh Warrington in Leeds, Warrington’s own backyard. It was an ugly fight, the kind that usually doesn’t end well for the visitor, but Lopez, defying the odds, won a split decision and snagged the title, extending his win streak to 10 since the Villa loss.

Lopez wasn’t done yet. He then traveled to Belfast to face two-time Irish Olympian Michael Conlan, stopping him in the fifth round. With a smug demeanor, Lopez continued his streak of defeating A-side fighters on their home turf, grinning like he knew the punchline to a joke no one else got.

All good things must come to an end. Lopez made two more title defenses against Joet Gonzalez and Reiya Abe before his luck – or durability – ran out. On Saturday, Lopez got a brutal reminder of just how fleeting success can be in boxing. Leo’s one-punch KO was the same kind of career-derailing blow Lopez had delivered to others. Now, it’s Lopez who’s on the ropes.

When asked if there will be another ‘Venado’ Lopez, Fernandez simply chuckled and said, “I wish I could tell you yes, but I don’t think so, because the promoters don’t give the opportunity to those guys with a blemish [on their] record. Everybody’s looking for perfect records, and everyone’s looking for those perfect fighters. It’s either now or never, so I don’t think the promoters will allow for that Cinderella story. Now, could there be others? Of course, there will be. We’ve seen it in the past, but it is hard.”

What made Lopez great was his defiance of the institution. He was supposed to be a stepping-stone, but he refused to fit the mold. After his loss to Leo, Lopez went to the hospital.

“He had a small brain bleed,” Fernandez said. “We stayed overnight in the hospital. We had another MRI in the morning, and the neurologist told him that the bleeding stopped, and just to get another MRI in six months. So if Venado still wants to continue fighting, I told them that I’m going to reject any offer until the six months pass by and we get another MRI, because for me, it’s not about money, it’s not about legacy. It’s about life. The fighters are like my kids or like my siblings, so I wouldn’t put them in any danger.”

While the Hall of Fame might not be calling, if there were a Hall of Very Good, Lopez would be a shoo-in. After all, it’s not every day you find a fighter who relishes being the bad guy in the ring, with a pleasant demeanor outside of it. Lopez, in the end, surprised most, if not all.

“When ESPN was asking me if I was surprised, I said I was surprised we were able to defend the belt successfully three times with a guy like this,” Fernandez said. “It’s just a matter of time. It could be the next one, but you’re always ready to get that ‘L.’ … Not the way it happened. We always thought that if we were going to lose, we were going to lose on points. The way it happened was horrendous. It was horrible. I don’t wish that on my worst enemy.”