The take back is now in motion for 'The Takeover.'

Fighting for the first time since the lone loss of his career, Brooklyn’s Teofimo Lopez rebounded in a big way with a seventh-round stoppage of Mexico’s Pedro Campa. Lopez scored a knockdown early in the round and then pummeled Campa until forcing referee Tony Weeks to intervene at 2:14 of the seventh round in their ESPN televised main event Saturday evening from Resorts World Casino in Las Vegas.

Lopez had to recover physically and mentally in the wake of his upset loss to George Kambosos Jr. last November at Madison Square Garden Hulu Theater in New York City. A split decision in favor of the unbeaten Australian ended Lopez’s lineal and unified lightweight championship reign, and with it his time in the 135-pound division.

 “I was at 135 pounds for nine years,” Lopez noted after his knockout win in explaining the physical difference felt Saturday evening in the ring. “It was killing my body since I was a teenage kid, man.”

The opening round of his first fight as a full-fledged junior welterweight saw Lopez—who weighed a lean but ripped 138.8 during Friday’s official weigh-in—measure up his naturally bigger foe.

Campa—whose lone prior defeat came via stoppage nearly five years ago—offered a responsible, defensive effort to avoid getting caught with anything big. The approach came at the expense of his normally high punch output, landing 8-of-49 total punches—well below his average of more than 80 punches per round though against lower competition.

Lopez picked up the pace in round two, catching Campa with a clean right hand upstairs. Campa took the shot well, even returning fire with a combination in the final minute of the round. Lopez was unbothered by the sequence, nor did he fight with the same reckless abandon that eventually led to his first defeat in his last fight nearly nine months ago.

Lopez found his swagger in round three. The former champ began with his jab before frequently landing with a sweeping right hand. Campa refused to wilt, though his face was showing the effects of power shots getting through as a mouse developed under his left eye. Lopez landed two more right hands inside of the final minute. Campa responded with a wide combination upstairs, missing the mark but refusing to back down.

Campa grew in confidence as the rounds progressed. He wasn’t necessarily enjoying more success but managed to make Lopez work that much harder to land his power shots. Lopez closed out round four with a flurry of punches upstairs, most of which were picked off by Campa but enough to shut down the Mexican’s offense.

Lopez eased off the gas in round five, looking to preserve his energy for the second half of the fight as it became clear that a knockout was not on its way anytime soon. Campa continued to walk down his smaller foe, throwing a fight-high 77 punches though unable to land anything of consequence—or even outland a relatively inactive Lopez in the round.

The second half of the fight began with Lopez throwing one punch at a time, though effective on several occasions. The attack began with a left jab to the body, with Lopez working his way upstairs with a right hand that landed enough to worsen the swelling around Campa’s left eye. Campa showed a sturdy chin, though—despite his glossy record—clearly lacked the equalizer to turn the tide.

It proved to be his undoing.

Lopez produced the lone knockdown of the bout with a right hand and left hooker-cut early in round seven. Campa beat the count but bore the look of a fighter who was well on his way to being done. Lopez didn’t ease up, unloading with a series of power shots as Campa’s left eye was all but swollen shut and nose bloodied. Three consecutive right hands were enough to produce the stoppage, and with it Lopez’s first win in nearly two years.

Campa falls to 34-2-1 (23KOs) with the defeat, snapping an eight-fight unbeaten streak. He eventually outworked Lopez, though via ineffective aggression as he was just 83-of-448 in total punches (18.5%). The majority were power shots, landing 63-of-244 (25.8%).

Lopez advances to 17-1 (13KOs) with the win, registering his first stoppage since the pandemic. That moment came in his first title win, when he annihilated Richard Commey inside of two rounds to claim the IBF lightweight title in December 2019. He got the job done through precision, landing 52.4% of his power shots (86-of-164) and 42.4% of his overall punches (136-of-321).

The feat was followed by his best win to date, a twelve-round decision over Vasiliy Lomachenko in their October 2020 lineal/WBA/IBF/WBO/WBC “Franchise” lightweight championship. The disheartening loss to Kambosos last November momentarily derailed his career, though Lopez is now back with a fresh start at junior welterweight.

Naturally, the question is who he will next face.

Lopez seems convinced that he will headline ESPN and Top Rank’s December 10 show, which will accompany the network’s presentation of college football’s annual Heisman Award ceremony. The card will take place on MSG property, though against who is the question.

There are several names on Lopez’s hit list, all of whom are attached to the divisional hardware.

“We want [lineal/IBF/WBO champ] Josh Taylor. We want these guys,” Lopez insisted. “We want [Regis] Prograis. We want [Jose] Zepeda. We want all the belts. We want to become two-time undisputed champion.”

There are several issues in lining up any of those fighters for his next fight, at least if he wants to fight in December. Taylor (19-0, 13KOs)—who has already vacated the WBA and WBC titles—is eyeing a rematch with England’s Jack Catterall, though he is also ordered to next defend against IBF mandatory challenger Jeremias Ponce. Prograis and Zepeda are currently in talks to fight for the vacant WBC title, which will likely take place in the fourth quarter of 2022.

Two people ringside represent the most realistic options for Lopez’s year-end opponent.

Unbeaten junior welterweight contender Arnold Barboza was the name first mentioned when Lopez originally discussed a move to 140 pounds. Lopez’s team moved in a different direction, though the California native is not at all going away. He comes off an impressive win over Danielito Zorrilla in July and insists he will be waiting to wait if it means landing the coveted assignment against the smaller Lopez.

Also in the house was Hall of Fame former six-division champion Oscar De La Hoya, whose Golden Boy Promotions represents unbeaten rising star Ryan Garcia (23-0, 19KOs). For all of Lopez’s insistence that his next fight will be Pay-Per-View, Garcia would be the only option to fit that bill, if he’s even available. The 24-year-old is also in talks to next face lightweight star Gervonta Davis (27-0, 25KOs), though a superfight with Lopez is as viable an alternate plan as they come.

“If Josh Taylor is too busy with his wedding and there’s nobody else around because the WBA belt is taken and the WBC is going to be fought with Zepeda and Prograis, then so fucking be it,” insisted Lopez on the thought of a showdown with Garcia.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for krikya360.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox