Teofimo Lopez makes surprise appearance at Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn press conference

Ahead of this weekend’s clash in Las Vegas, Teofimo Lopez made a surprise appearance at the Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn press conference, with the former two-weight world champion making his presence felt as the pair prepare to battle for the WBC welterweight title.

Garcia and Benn finally came face-to-face on Thursday, with the two men trading plenty of words before their showdown this Saturday.

The presence of Lopez, however, added another subplot to the occasion, with Garcia admitting he would need to beat the former unified lightweight champion before considering himself the face of boxing.

When Garcia was asked by a disguised Lopez whether he considered himself the face of the sport, Garcia's response was simple.

“Yes. I have to beat Teofimo (Lopez) first though.”

That was enough to draw a reaction from Lopez.

“Well, that's too damn bad!”

The New Yorker would then remove his disguise, drawing a huge pop from the crowd and those on the stage.

Garcia and Lopez have yet to meet in the ring, but should Garcia successfully defend the WBC gold on Saturday, a meeting between the two could be on the cards for early 2027 should the WBA opt not to enforce Jack Catterall’s mandatory challenge.

Lopez was last in action in August, beating Rolly Romero over 12 rounds via majority decision.

With Lopez's surprise appearance over, attention returned to Saturday's main event as Garcia and Benn came together for their face-off.

In another attempt to get beneath the skin of the British fighter, it was shown on the broadcast that Garcia had attempted to bring numerous eggs with him onto the stage. However, security quickly sniffed out the plan, confiscating the eggs before any damage was done.

The eggs, of course, were a reminder of the controversy surrounding Benn, who was suspended by the British Boxing Board of Control after twice testing positive for clomifene, a banned substance, in voluntary drug tests in 2022.

Both boxers exchanged words during the face-off, with Benn opting to ‘hush’ Garcia by putting a finger in front of his mouth and calling for his opponent to stop talking.

With just a small number of sleeps to go, the talking is almost over and the time for action is fast approaching, with Garcia and Benn seemingly ready to settle their differences inside the ring on Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena.