(APR 16, 2005) BOSTON – NER Promotions has signed two-time Venezuelan Olympian Patriz (El Elegante) Lopez to a promotional contract, NER president Rick Brutti announced on April 15.
“Patriz Lopez is the first of many prospects we intend to sign this year,” Brutti said. “He was considered the best and most complete amateur boxer in Latin America for the past three years. With his success and international experience, we believe Patriz has all the makings of a future world champion. We plan to have him fight on our next pro card. NER Promotions is very excited about signing our first pro boxer and we look forward to building our stable exciting fighters.”
Lopez, 27, turned pro last December. He is 2-0 with two knockouts, fighting as a lightweight, and both bouts were held in his native Venezuela.
A representative of Venezuela in the 2004 & 2000 Olympics, Lopez had a distinguished amateur career with more than 200 matches and only nine losses. He was a gold medallist in the 2003 Pan American Games and 2002 Central America Games in the 141-pound division. He also competed twice in the World Amateur Championships, as well as the Cheo Aponte International Tournament (4) in Puerto Rico and Torneo Juvented & Cardin Tournament (3) in Cuba.