Daniel Ponce De Leon, who successfully defended his WBO super bantamweight title just a few weeks ago by blowing out number one challenger Rey Bautista in one round, has gotten the green light by his promoter Golden Boy Promotions to get right back in the thick of things by fighting on September 28th.
“Two weeks ago, Eric Gomez (GBP’s matchmaker) asked me if Ponce was in shape right after the fight. I told him he was, no damage and still training,” said Joe Hernandez, who trains and advises De Leon. “Then a few days ago I got another call, asking us if Ponce would be interested in fighting right away, just a small fight, to keep him busy and give him further exposure, not for the money, rather for more people who have heard of him and what he did in his last fight, but who didn’t have the money to buy the PPV, a chance to see him again on free TV.”
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Daniel Ponce De Leon is anxious to get back into the ring following a first round win last month. De Leon, who has headlined Telefutura’s very popular ‘Solo Boxeo’ series in the past, will be doing so again when he faces 28-4-2 (19 KOs) Reynaldo Lopez. Lopez, who hails from Colombia, has been campaigning as a super flyweight in recent years, and will be making a jump (a la Marco Antonio Barrera and Manny Pacquiao into the 122 LB. ranks) skipping the bantamweights for a chance against Ponce.
The odds are definitely stacked against Lopez, who has never seen, nor tasted any firepower the likes of which the Chihuahua-born De Leon possesses. That is not to say Lopez is a no-hoper, as he went the distance in his last fight in November of last year against current WBC super flyweight champion Cristian Mijares in a bid for a 115-pound title.
De Leon (32-1, 29 KOs), a notorious gym rat is already working hard, as he has another fight looming this December and cannot afford to trip up at this point and time.
“Ponce has a big fight remaining in this year, it’s in his contract. We were hoping he could be put on the big Cotto vs. Mosley card, but that doesn’t seem likely, as that one is already pretty much filled up,” said Hernandez.
Another option talked about would be a rematch against Gerry Penalosa, whom De Leon decisioned in March of this year. Penalosa would go on to stop Jhonny Gonzalez for the WBO bantamweight title on the same card where De Leon stopped Bautista.
Then there is a possible fight against undefeated Puerto Rican Juan Manuel Lopez, who is already ranked at number three by the WBO.
“We went to Puerto Rico last week (attending the Cazares Vs. Calderon PPV) and spoke to the WBO about those fights, we also spoke to PR Best Promotions (Jerry Rivera) and Top Rank, Juan Manuel’s promoters, but of course, everything has to come together to make one of those big fights happen,” concluded Hernandez.
The Juan Manuel Lopez fight could take place in Puerto Rico, and the Penalosa rematch could very well end up in the Philippines, depending on the monetary dealings.
But first things first, and De Leon vs. Reynaldo Lopez will be staged at the Casino Morongo, Resort & Spa in Cabazon, California, in the first fight card of many more to come as GBP reached a promotional deal with the property last week.
