TEOFIMO LOPEZ feels like he has gone back in time by sharing a fight card with all old amateur rivals.
Lopez features on the remarkable three-bout bill on Friday night, staged in the centre of New York’s Times Square.
The WBO super-lightweight world champion, 27, defends his belt against Arnold Barboza Jr.
Also in action is Devin Haney, returning after a year out to face Jose Ramirez Jr, up in weight at a 144lb catchweight clash.
And headlining is the return of Ryan Garcia against former sparring rival Rolando Romero.
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Tempers have threatened to boil over in the build-up to the never-before-seen card in the Big Apple.
After all, they know each other all too well having come up in the amateur circuit together where they would often fight alongside each other.
Lopez told SunSport: “We all know each other from like the amateurs. That’s what it feels like right now.
“It feels like we’re in a national tournament. Only thing is that the stage got bigger.
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“The people know us a bit more and what else can I say? It’s a historic event. But other than that, it’s, no pressure, no rivalry, just entertainment.”
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Garcia is back after serving a one-year drugs ban for testing testing positive for ostarine – known to boost muscle growth – after fighting Haney.
The initial victory – which included three knockdowns – was chalked off and turned into a no-contest.
But a rematch is already planned between the two for October.
Garcia said: “I think that he has a great chance to beat Ramirez. Ramirez is a little past his prime. So I expect both of us to win, for sure.
“I have no idea how he’s gonna go about himself. I just know that I was in his head the first time.
“It’s hard to look past getting dropped three times, I mean, you have to address that within yourself. So I don’t know how he’s gonna handle that.”
Haney bluntly hit back: “Right now it’s not time for me to speak on that. Right now my main focus is Jose Ramirez and focusing on Jose.
“We’ll get to that Ryan fight after this one, but right now I put all my attention, all my focus on Jose Ramirez because he’s a live dog. He’s coming to fight.
“That’s my main focus right now.”
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Watch the full episode of The Sun’s Split Decision featuring exclusive interviews with Canelo Alvarez, Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney.
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
