Yeah, location could matter in this fight. Is it in Sactown, or Houston? Me thinks that either way Lopez was the better fighter.
Good question. My gut feel is that the winner is the hometown guy. Barring a stoppage on a cut or something like that.
I think Lopez gets beat up on this a little to often to be fair. Perhaps it is because he is one of my favorites, and a bias that I have tried to avoid has crept in. I know he has had a couple of controversial decisions (but I could say that about many others as well.) but I am not sure that this statement is totally fair to him either. He has 2 tough fights againsy Rocky Lockridge...he pretty much controlled the early part of the fight before getting KD'd for the first time in the 8th rd....and a hellacious shot it was that dropped him (actually given another 20 seconds he might not have survived)..but he came back a scored a hard fought decision..in the 2nd fight he did so even more emphatically although it was stilla tough contested fight. He won a UD against Molina in their first encounter (I had a draw) that was widely disputed but I don't see the major outcry...I thought Molina could outbox him, but he often tried to stand and trade with Tony...some John John corrected in the 2nd encounter. In the 2nd fight Molina scored the stoppage and was also up by 5-9 pts (through 9 rds) on all 3 cards...the 3rd fight does not really factor in as much because it was in Reno (although Tony's fan base probably made that trip) to me it was a close fight again Molina could have chosen to outbox him and I remember his corner telling him that numerous times, but for whatever reson he wanted to outslug Lopez and got caught in the 11th and that KD seeled my card for Tony! Then we come to Brian Mitchell and the controversial draw (which again is how my scorecard read), this one seemed to have more of an outcry than the Molina 1 fight. When they fought the 2nd time Brian gave an even better performance and the judges all 3 scored it for Mitchell in Sacramento. Then comes Thobela 1 and another controversy (this time I had Dingaan 115-113), I though Thobela edged it and deserved the decision, but didn't see it as an outright robbery either. Again Thobela went to his home turf and scored the decision many felt he deserved after the first fight. but in Lopez's carear I count 3 disputed wins, none of which I feel was an outright robbery, and only the Thobela 1 decision bothered me as unfair (slightly, not to be confused with a robbery). I am not sure that is enough evidence to say he would only win in his hometown although it has become a popular opinion here. I think Tony is a warrior and the blanket statement is unfair to him on the whole. But in this case I don't think it matters, Lopez scores an 11th rd tko over Diaz....while also ahead on the cards just in case!
Oh no, I wouldn't suggest he couldn't win outside of Sacramento. He did go to Gamache's hometown to knock him out, after all. But you gotta admit; a lot of close fights went his way at Arco, and he was in no hurry to leave the place. At 130, he practically (if ever) left there. I thought Molina had him by a couple points the first time, and thought Thobela got jobbed. Two fights doesn't make a career, I know, but he seemed to know what worked for him.
