Light heavyweight Najee Lopez believes he is the best prospect in his division and that his last fight proved this.

Lopez, 13-0 (10 KOs), returns Saturday against Juan Gerardo Osuna at the Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee, Florida. The bout will be part of the undercard telecast of the IBF junior middleweight elimination bout between Erickson Lubin and Ardreal Holmes Jnr on ProBox TV. 

Lopez felt that his previous win – over Gilberto “Lenin” Castillo – legitimized his run toward the top of the division. Lopez stopped Castillo in the sixth round, which extended his knockout streak to two. 

“I am the best prospect at 175lbs,” Lopez told BoxingScene. “I feel like with my last fight, I showed that I belong at the top of the weight class.”

The bout signaled a step-up in class. Lopez has been matched tough early in his career, but Castillo had faced former titleholders such as Dmitry Bivol and Callum Smith. Lopez, a 25-year-old from Ellenwood, Georgia, is now ranked No. 13 by the WBA after his win in January. 

“It was exciting, actually,” Lopez said. “It was a lot of pressure, but no pressure at the same time. It was my ‘step my game up’ fight. I used the butterflies and used the nerves to be sharp. I understood he was a veteran with experience. He had been in there with the top guys.”

Marc Farrait, Lopez’s trainer, added: “It gave him a lot of confidence, even though he fought a guy who was long in the tooth. Being in the ring with a guy who could hurt you at any time puts him on another level with discipline inside and outside of the ring.”

Osuna is 22-2 (20 KOs), and despite facing limited opposition for most of his career, the 24-year-old from Mexicali, Mexico, has shown power. In Osuna’s most notable performance, he was stopped by up-and-comer Khalil Coe in 2024. Since that fight, Osuna has gotten two knockout wins in Tijuana, Mexico. 

Lopez aims to continue to stand out as a notable fighter on the rise in the light heavyweight division.

“I just want to piggyback off my last performance,” Lopez said.