I must admit i don't know much about the lighter weights but i have gained a interest on him. Seeing some of his highlights he was a very offensive fighter which is unusual as guys, often as dominant as him and on massive unbeaten streaks, are often more defensive(RJJ or PBF). Did he completly dominate his era, or did he seek weaker challenges and pad his resume? Or did he take on all challenges and was so good he beat them all? Also what was the minimumweight and lightfly era like then?
The division is just weak historically. There wasn't much there for him to fight, but he did totally dominate. Lopez was textbook perfection, a complete fighter, he did absolutely everything right. Granted, he didn't really have the opponents to test him much. He could have looked for big fights against Michael Carbajal or Chiquita Gonzales at 108lbs, but they never came off. The best fighter he ever faced was Rosendo Alvarez, who gave him hell, but was a naturally bigger man and facing a faded version of Finito. Lopez is a great fighter imo, and because his resume is weak, that greatness is based almost eniterly on his sheer dominance and tremendous ability. Obviously there are guys who did it against superior opposition, but you'll find that hardly anyone looks better on film than he does. 5-10 range in the list for great Mexicans is where I would place him.
If your talking strictly popularity wise, He could also be a little below, Pipino Cuevas & possibly Humberto Gonzalez. Icons in Mexico.
I'd say top ten. Textbook boxer, absolutely perfect. Greatest strawweight who ever lived, it's just a shame his competition wasn't up to par. A surefire all-time great imo.
I would have rated him 4 or 5 not long ago...But upon further reflection I have come the realization that the fact is his resume is just so weak that his clear ability and in ring dominance is not enough to overcome the gulf in the level of opposition compared to the other Mexican greats. Who were nearly as good, often perhaps even better, but showed this against a far superior level of competition. Id probably slot him in 7-9...Chavez, Sanchez, Olivares, Canto, Zarate, Morales and probably even Barerra would likely be ahead of him in my list these days.
Chavez Sanchez Canto Saldivar Olivares Zarate Morales Barrera Arizmendi would all have to rank above him. Then he's in a discussion with Rafael Herrera, Chucho Castillo, Jose Medel, Lupe Pintor, Jose Becerra, Raul Macias and Kid Azteca. Juan Manuel Marquez too, though he's not finished yet to properly rank him. Lopez is probably above the likes of Humberto Gonzalez, Effren Torres, Guty Espadas Sr., Juan Herrera and Rodolfo Martinez, but all those fighters had much better wins than him, for they al faced better competition.
As far as Mexican Boxing goes....I divide it in two eras before Ricardo and after Ricardo. He and Barrera are mainly responsible for the new era of Boxer Punchers out of Mexico. Mijares, Marvin Quintero, and Juan Manuel Marquez. His influence may be greater than his resume. You have to give the guy props for fighting opponents that outweighed him and destroying them. Most of his best fight were in Japan (I think)....
What would you call Olivares and Saldivar ricard? Id say they fit that boxer-puncher mould pretty well...and they were well and truly the contemporaries of the fighters you mentioned. Lopez only fought a few times in Japan from memory mate...he fought more in Mexico and the States. I would also say he never really fought guys who were much bigger then him, he was a respectable build for a straweight.