Teofimo Lopez wants nothing to do with Jack Catterall right now, and who can blame him when a massive payday against Ryan Garcia is sitting right there on the table for February 6. According to Mike Coppinger, the WBA has notified the camps that Lopez can apply for a special permit to unify with WBC welterweight champion Ryan Garcia, which would move mandatory challenger Jack Catterall to the back of the line once again.
It’s understandable why Teofimo (22-1, 13 KOs) is looking for a way around Catterall. Stylistically, Catterall (30-2, 13 KOs) is pure poison for Lopez. We have seen this movie plenty of times whenever Teofimo steps in the ring with a slick, negative southpaw or a defensive counterpuncher who refuses to stand in front of him.
Look at how lost and miserable Lopez looked against Sandor Martin and Jamaine Ortiz, where he spent half the night swinging at air and looking totally frustrated because nobody would trade with him. Catterall fights that exact same spoiling, hit-and-not-get-hit style, and he has the timing to make Lopez look awful or even steal a decision on the scorecards.
Ryan Garcia (25-2, 20 KOs) is the complete opposite. Garcia stands right in front of you, keeps his chin up, and leaves wide-open lanes for counter right hands and left hooks. For Lopez, fighting Garcia is a golden ticket to a massive purse and a highlight-reel shootout, whereas taking the Catterall mandatory first risks blowing the whole February 6 promotion before it even gets off the ground.
Eddie Hearn Threatens Legal Action Over the Belt
Of course, Catterall’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, is furious and threatening legal action if the sanctioning body lets Lopez bypass his fighter while keeping the strap.
“I would sue them immediately,” Hearn said on Inside the Ring.
Hearn had already predicted that Lopez would vacate the WBA belt if forced to defend against Catterall. Keeping the title gives Lopez serious leverage at the negotiating table with Garcia’s team, allowing him to pitch a two-belt unification and demand a much bigger slice of the revenue. Even as a three-division champion with plenty of name value, walking into negotiations without a belt weakens his bargaining power. Fans buying tickets or ordering the event barely care whether one belt or two is on the line, since they are tuning in to see Lopez and Garcia trade bombs, but for Lopez’s bank account, that strap matters plenty.
The WBA Timeline Mess Leaves Catterall Waiting
For Catterall, this endless waiting game is getting ridiculous. He earned his shot back on May 23 by beating Shakhram Giyasov for the WBA Regular title, under terms that were supposed to guarantee him a shot at the full champion within 180 days. That deadline points right to November 19. Instead, Rolly Romero held the belt for over 15 months without fighting Giyasov, lost a majority decision to Lopez on August 22, and now Lopez is trying to kick the can down the road into 2027.
Even though the WBA reaffirmed its September 22 order on November 11 and gave the sides a 10-day window to reach a deal or head to a purse bid, everybody knows how sanctioning bodies operate when huge money is involved. The WBA collects its 3% sanctioning fee from both fighters, and a Garcia vs. Lopez clash brings in vastly more cash than a mandatory defense against Catterall. Chris Mannix also reported that Lopez’s team already filed a unification permit request on November 5, meaning the wheels are already turning behind closed doors.
Spring Megafights Could Freeze Catterall Out Until 2027
If the WBA caves and grants this exception, Catterall is left holding a worthless paper title shot. Worse yet, if Garcia beats Lopez on February 6, you can bet Garcia will immediately chase mega-fights against names like Devin Haney, Conor Benn, or Mario Barrios in the spring rather than bothering with a low-reward mandatory against Catterall. Unless the WBA actually enforces its own rules for once, Catterall is going to spend another year sitting on the sidelines watching everybody else cash in.
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