Teófimo López v Shakur Stevenson: WBO junior welterweight championship – live

• American stars clash at sold-out Madison Square Garden

• Stevenson rises to 140lb in bid for title in fourth division

• Teófimo López interview: ‘Always choose the hard route’

• Reach out to Bryan on Bluesky or by email

The second-to-last preliminary fight before the main event has just started. It’s an eagerly awaited one, with local favorite Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington facing Phoenix’s Carlos Castro for the vacant WBC featherweight title. The unbeaten Carrington, who hails from Brooklyn’s Brownsville neighborhood, has a vocal cheering contingent in the building as he bids for his first world title in his 17th professional fight.

Meanwhile, one of the strangest moments of the night unfolded about in the previous bout when Kingsley Ibeh quite literally punched Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller’s hair loose during their heavyweight non-title scrap. Late in the second round, a flurry from Ibeh sent Miller’s toupee peeling back from the front, drawing gasps – and then laughter – from the Madison Square Garden crowd. Miller leaned into the chaos, ripping the hairpiece off completely and tossing it into the stands before the next round, grinning and sticking out his tongue as he resumed fighting. Continue reading...