Diego Lopes Confirms UFC Lightweight Plans With Madison Square Garden in Sight
After having fought at featherweight, Diego Lopes is ready to move up to lightweight:
Brazil’s Diego Lopes has spent the last few years making 145 pounds feel like a temporary address. In fact, after fighting his way through contenders, surviving wild exchanges, while earning a pair of shots at Alexander Volkanovski’s title, the 31-year-old is finally making a switch to lightweight.
Following a statement win over Steve Garcia at UFC Freedom 250, Lopes appears ready to stop waiting for the featherweight division to give him another reason to stay. He wants to move up. He already knows where he wants the next part of his career to begin: Madison Square Garden, in front of one of the combat sports' biggest crowds.
Diego Lopes is Already Talking About his Next Fight
The fighter confirmed the move to lightweight while speaking to AG Fight, and there was little hesitation in the way he talked about it.
“We’re already in pretty advanced talks about the next opponent. We’re hoping we can get it finalized this week,” Lopes stated, according to credible inside sources. “I want to fight in November at MSG. I think that’s a good date for me, and it also gives me enough time to adapt my weight a little more for 155.”
Lopes is already talking about an opponent, already talking about November, and, perhaps most importantly, already thinking about what his body needs to make 155-lb work.
Could Madison Square Garden be in Offing for Diego Lopes?
New York’s iconic Madison Square Garden would be an appropriate place for the move, too. Lopes has become one of those fighters the UFC can put on a big card and reasonably expect people to care about, considering the wild reception he received at the White House.
According to various sources, the UFC reportedly brought up Arman Tsarukyan as a possible opponent. Lopes said he was willing to take that fight, but the conversation never became anything serious. And now, the Armenian grappler is booked to fight Mauricio Ruffy, so that particular road is closed for now.
However, though, there is another name that makes plenty of sense. Charles Oliveira. In fact, Lopes has previously mentioned “De Bronx” as someone he'd be interested in fighting. If the UFC wanted to give him a recognizable opponent for his first lightweight appearance, Oliveira would be the toughest of them all.
Lopes’ Featherweight Reign of Terror
It is easy but not fair to look at Lopes moving up and assume he is simply giving up on the featherweight title.
The Manaus native has already fought his way into the title picture and shared the Octagon with “The Great” twice despite falling short. Keeping those two and his unanimous decision losses against Movsar Evloev and Joanderson Brito during his initial days in the promotion, Lopes has become a legitimate name at 145 pounds rather than a fighter who happened to get one big opportunity.
His recent knockout of Garcia came as a cold reminder of how dangerous he can be, beyond a showman.
For the unversed, Garcia, aka "Mean Machine," had built a reputation of his own as one of the more dangerous finishers in the division, yet Lopes eventually found the opening and put him away in the second round.
This begs the question: what exactly is Lopes (28-8-0) supposed to do at featherweight? Wait for another title opportunity while Volkanovski remains champion? Start over against another contender? Keep making the same difficult cut to 145 while knowing the road back to the belt could be a long one?
Diego Lopes Moving to Lightweight Could be Right Decision
Against the backdrop, the move to 155 seems logical. That said, among all the divisions in the UFC, lightweight is obviously bigger, deeper, and filled with fighters who can make Lopes pay for mistakes.
Lopes has the grappling to trouble just about anyone at 155, and his ability to thrive when fights get messy is not going anywhere. The bigger question is what happens when he has to deal with bigger, stronger men. A lighter weight cut could bring out a better version of Lopes, but lightweight will demand more from him physically.
For the first time in a while, there is no familiar path in front of him. Lopes has to find his own while treading shallow waters at 155.
