Teofimo Lopez’s Next Fight Ordered

WBA welterweight champion Teofimo Lopez (23-2, 13 KOs) has been ordered to defend his title against his mandatory, Jack Catterall (33-2, 14 KOs), disrupting his plans for a unification fight with WBC champion Ryan Garcia.

The WBA confirmed the mandatory defense on September 22, giving both camps until October 22 to negotiate a deal before a purse bid is ordered.

Catterall secured his position as mandatory challenger by defeating Shakhram Giyasov in April. Lopez defeated Rolando Romero by majority decision on August 22 to become a three-division world champion.

Lopez had been pursuing a fight with Garcia after attempting to enter the ring following the WBC champion’s second-round stoppage of Conor Benn in Las Vegas earlier this month. Garcia has since offered interim WBC super lightweight champion Isaac Cruz a fight in December, while denying rumors he was in talks to face Lopez at Madison Square Garden in February.

Lopez’s team has questioned whether he will retain the WBA title. Lopez’s representatives reportedly claim WBA president Gilberto Mendoza had previously assured them that the Catterall fight would not be ordered, allowing Lopez to pursue a bigger bout.

Catterall meanwhile has been pushing the title shot vs Lopez, and previously stated that he would not take a step aside deal to allow the Lopez vs Garcia fight to take place.