Fate smiles on Lopez in pursuit of title

Josesito Lopez is convinced fate and karma are just as important as a good jab and a solid uppercut.

In a perfect world, the 28-year-old from Riverside, Calif., might have found a spot on Saturday's Golden Boy Promotions card at the MGM Grand Garden. He certainly wouldn't have landed in the main event against Saul "Canelo" Alvarez for the WBC junior middleweight title.

But Paul Williams injured himself in a motorcycle accident, and James Kirkland priced himself out of the fight. Couple that with Lopez's big win over Victor Ortiz on June 23, and suddenly he became the most viable opponent for Alvarez on the Showtime card.

"I think fate definitely plays a role," said Lopez (30-4, 18 knockouts). "I've had some tough losses, and while I always dreamed of getting an opportunity like this, I never thought it would happen the way it did.

"But regardless of how it happened, it's up to me to take full advantage of it because chances like these don't come around very often."

The 22-year-old Alvarez (40-0-1, 29 KOs) is a minus-1,400 betting favorite at the MGM Resorts sports books, which means Lopez figures to enter the ring with the mindset that he has nothing to lose.

"I don't mind what people think about me not having a chance," he said. "I believe I've earned my place to be here, and we're fighting a guy who can be beaten."

The storyline has been Lopez, who a year ago was fighting Jessie Vargas as a junior welterweight, being considered too small to defeat Alvarez, a natural 154-pounder. But at 5 feet 10 inches, Lopez is an inch taller than Alvarez. And as Lopez's trainer, Henry Ramirez, accurately points out, the only area where Alvarez is bigger is on his waistline. Which in his mind means Lopez has more of a target to hit.

"Trust me, Jose is going to be ready," Ramirez said. "I've never seen him look sharper in training for a fight. I actually believe he's going to be quicker and stronger, and I think Canelo's going to be surprised when he sees how quick and how strong Jose is."

Lopez said the key for him to have a chance is to start fast and gain early confidence.

"It's going to be important to get his attention early and let him know we're going to be there until the end," Lopez said. "I've grown up fighting bigger guys, and (Alvarez) doesn't intimidate me."

Lopez said when he fought Ortiz as a late replacement for Andre Berto, who had tested positive for steroids, his strategy was to stay busy, pressure Ortiz and wait for the opportunity to land the big blow.

The game plan worked, as Lopez broke Ortiz's jaw in the ninth round and he was unable to continue. Lopez doesn't know if he can break Alvarez's jaw, but after taking a fight on short notice again, he has focused on getting himself ready to fight at his best.

"I'm pretty sure Victor Ortiz didn't underestimate me because he was preparing for a big fight of his own against Canelo," Lopez said. "And I don't think given what happened against Victor that Canelo is going to underestimate me.

"I've watched tapes of Canelo. He always comes in shape, and he's going to be ready to fight. He's the type of fighter who likes to dictate the pace and likes to dictate the fight. I think we have to provide a game plan that can take that away from him and give us the best chance to win."

Lopez said he thinks he has yet to reach his ceiling as a fighter and a win Saturday could allow his career to take off.

"I feel like I've been a late bloomer in the sport," he said. "I believe I've yet to fight my best fight, and I can see myself getting better. With each fight, I learn something that helps me perform better the next fight.

"I've never had a training camp like this one. I've never felt stronger. Usually, I'm spending the last weeks before a fight trying to cut weight. This time, I'm eating five, six times a day, and I feel great. I don't have to worry about weight this time. I just have to be sharp and be ready."

■ NOTES - Today's weigh-in at the Grand Garden begins at 2 p.m. Doors open at noon, and the event is free to the public. ... Golden Boy is offering a $100,000 bonus to the fighter who registers the biggest knockout on Saturday's card. Fans will determine the winner by texting their choices from their mobile devices. If there's only one knockout, that fighter will get the bonus. ... Showtime will televise four title fights on Saturday's card: Alvarez-Lopez, the WBC featherweight bout between Jhonny Gonzalez (52-7, 45 KOs) and Daniel Ponce De Leon (43-4, 35 KOs), the WBA intercontinental welterweight fight between Marcos Maidana (31-3, 28 KOs) and Jesus Soto-Karass (26-7-3, 17 KOs) and the IBF bantamweight fight between Leo Santa Cruz (20-0-1, 11 KOs) and Eric Morel (46-3, 23 KOs). The telecast begins at 6 p.m.

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj.