Ghanaian light heavyweight boxer Bastie Samir believes Commey has what it takes to fight Lomachenko next year and wants his compatriot to dispatch Lopez in order to pave the way for a showdown with the Ukrainian early next year.
Commey is expected to make his mandatory title defence against Lopez at the Madison Square Garden in a co-feature of Terrence Crawford v Egidijus Kavaliauskas card on ESPN.
In an interview with the Graphic Sports, the 32-year-old Samir challenged his compatriot to continue working hard to hold on to his title since that was the only way to maintain his relevance at the top of the sport.
Samir said he was convinced that with the kind of experience he possessed, Commey would silence the American boxing community with an impressive victory over Lopez.
“I respect Commey a lot because of where he came from and all that he has achieved over the years. It shows how committed and hardworking he is and I always commend him for his efforts. I want him to make the Lomachenko unification happen next year and the only way to do it is by ensuring an emphatic win over Teofimo Lopez which I believe he will,” he told the Graphic Sports.
Hard-hitting Commey is unbeaten in his last five bouts, with his last four against Alejandro Luna, Yardley Cruz, Isa Chaniev and Raymundo Beltran all coming by way of knockouts.
Having lost his maiden world title championship to Robert Easter Jnr in September 2016, Commey cruised to a second round stoppage win over Isa Chaniev last February to win the vacant IBF lightweight strap.
Commey goes into his second title defence against Lopez on the back of an impressive record of one defeat in three world championship fights.
Lopez, on the other hand, is undefeated in 14 bouts and will make his maiden world championship appearance next month, having defeated Japan’s Nakatani Masayoshi in a world title eliminator last July. Read Full Story
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