Lopez hopes to follow Trinidad to top

NEW YORK – Juan Manuel Lopez basked in the attention, standing on stage and pounding his bare chest as he weighed in for today’s featherweight title fight against Steven Luevano.

He’s only 26, but already JuanMa has become the latest Puerto Rican idol, with an easy smile and boyish good looks that mask incredible power. He’s perfect through 27 fights, winning all but three by knockout, at one point stopping three straight opponents in the first round.

He reminds many of his own idol, Felix Trinidad, who for so long carried the mantle as the best fighter from the boxing-rich island.

“I’m really happy to be passing the torch,” said Trinidad, who joined Lopez on stage Friday. “In some ways he reminds me of myself. It’s a great time for him to be coming along, and I think he’s going to be on top for a long time to come.”

Lopez hopes it really is his turn.

“I’m trying to take it day-by-day, what is going on in my life,” Lopez said. “We’re going to continue that way, because you want to be careful you don’t get ahead of yourself.”

That’s a difficult proposition when the world seems to revolve around you.

Lopez is clearly the headliner for tonight’s card in the theater at Madison Square Garden, even though the junior featherweight titleholder is the challenger for Luevano’s WBO featherweight belt.

Lopez enjoys being the center of attention, walking into a news conference on Thursday with an entourage that numbered nearly a dozen. All of them were dressed in matching red, white and black track suits, his own saying “JuanMa” across the chest and on his hat.