LONDON — Teofimo Lopez has been ordered to defend his WBA 'super' welterweight title against Briton Jack Catterall, with the WBA setting a deadline of 22 October for the two parties to reach an agreement or face a purse bid. Lopez, 29, became the WBA super champion with a points win over Rolando Romero last month.
Catterall, 33, is the mandatory challenger and WBA 'regular' title-holder after beating Shakhram Giyasov in May to become the number one contender. The Chorley native acknowledged the ruling on X with a brief message to the champion: "Hi Teofimo Lopez."
Lopez, a three-weight world champion, had been campaigning for a unification bout against WBC champion Ryan Garcia instead. He attended fight week for Garcia v Conor Benn in Las Vegas earlier this month and was stopped from entering the ring after Garcia's quick win. If Lopez withdraws from negotiations he could relinquish the title, which may see Catterall upgraded to world champion.
Catterall last fought for a world title in 2022 when he was controversially beaten by then undisputed light-welterweight champion Josh Taylor. He holds a record of 33 wins with 14 stoppages and just two defeats, to Taylor and American Arnold Barboza Jr. Lopez also has two career losses, a points defeat to George Kambosos Jr in 2021 and a decision loss to Shakur Stevenson in January.