Boxing

Shakur Stevenson and Teofimo Lopez Face Off at MSG During Knicks Game

Budding rivals meet on the court at the same arena they will be fighting in on Saturday
Jaren Kawada|
Teofimo Lopez
Teofimo Lopez | IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

Shakur Stevenson and Teofimo Lopez are ready to roll at Madison Square Garden.

The two budding rivals will throw down at the world's most famous arena on Saturday in the main event of Ring VI.

Before engaging in their highly anticipated super lightweight title fight, the headlining fighters kicked off fight week with an on-court face-off at Madison Square Garden during a timeout of the New York Knicks' Tuesday night home game against the Sacramento Kings.

The fighters stared into each other's eyes for a solid 20 seconds, with Lopez holding his two belts in each hand. The crowd gave each fighter a warm reception during their introductions. Both were also gifted custom No. 1 jerseys from the Knicks.

The two champions watched the Knicks improve to 28-18 with a 103-87 win over the Kings. New York travels to the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday before returning to Madison Square Garden on Friday.

MORE: How To Watch Teofimo Lopez vs Shakur Stevenson: Date, Start Time, Fight Card & Live Stream

The arena crew will have their hands full on Friday night, when they will convert Madison Square Garden from New York's home court to the host of Ring VI. Once Lopez and Stevenson clear the ring, the focus will immediately return to the Knicks, who will be playing in the Arena again on Sunday.

Teofimo Lopez, Shakur Stevenson link with celebrities at Knicks game

Shakur Stevenson
WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson | IMAGO / Torsten Helmke

Lopez, 28, will defend the WBO and The Ring super lightweight titles against Stevenson, 28, the WBC lightweight champion. Lopez will be attempting his fourth defense of the belts, while Stevenson is making his 140-pound debut.

Both fighters will have strong local support, with Lopez hailing from Brooklyn, New York, and Stevenson growing up in Newark, New Jersey. Lopez will technically be the local fighter, but Stevenson has a wider general fan base.

MORE: Watch Teofimo Lopez face Shakur Stevenson Live On DAZN

The crowd split on Saturday remains to be seen, but they were evenly split between the fighters on Tuesday. Lopez and Stevenson each had one major New York celebrity and Knicks superfan on their side during the game.

Stevenson gained the favor of actor and stand-up comedian Tracy Morgan, who offered his support after the game.

Lopez, meanwhile, linked up with the Knicks' most famous super fan, director Spike Lee. The filmmaker sought out the champion during pre-game warm-ups, where he learned Lopez was a Brooklyn native.

With Madison Square Garden combat sports events typically drawing numerous celebrities, Morgan and Lee could very well be back in the building on Saturday night.

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Jaren Kawada
JAREN KAWADA

Jaren Kawada is a combat sports writer who specializes in betting, with over five years of experience in boxing and MMA. When he is not covering the sport, Kawada is an avid MMA, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and boxing practitioner. Kawada has previous bylines with ClutchPoints, Sportskeeda MMA, BetSided and FanSided MMA. Born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, Kawada has a B.A. in Sports Media from Butler University and now resides in Denver, Colorado.

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