WBO 140lb champion Teofimo Lopez says he is in negotiations to fight a unification match next against IBF light welterweight champion Richardson Hitchins.
Teofimo (21-1, 13 KOs) will then move up to 147 and challenge IBF welterweight champion Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis in October on the Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney 2 card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. If Lopez is victorious against Ennis, he will face the winner of Garcia-Haney 2 in February 2026 in Riyadh.
Lopez-Hitchins Unification
Lopez won’t say if he has to win the Hitchins (19-0, 7 KOs) unification fight as a condition for him to face Boots Ennis in October. However, it is likely that Turki Al-Sheikh will still allow Teofimo to face Ennis in October, even if Richardson beats him because he agrees with fighters who support big fights after defeats.
What could be a problem is if Teofimo is knocked out by Hitchins in a humiliating defeat, it will taint a fight between him and Boots in October. There is an excellent chance that Hitchins will dominate Teofimo and make him look worse than George Kambosos Jr, Sandor Martin and Jamaine Ortiz. Will Turki still want to use Teo for October to throw him in the ring with Boots Ennis?
That would be the equivalent of rewarding defeat. Lopez looked terrible in his last two fights against seven-loss youngster Steve Claggett and Jamaine Ortiz. The fans think that Lopez gave a decision against Jamaine, and the same for his fight against Sandor Martin.
“I look forward to a very productive year. We have a three-fight deal that is not yet disclosed, but we look forward to announcing it very soon,” said Teofimo Lopez to Fight Hub TV about him signing with Turki Al-Sheikh.
“Yes, that’s what it looks like, yes,” Teofimo said when told that he heard from Turki that he will fight Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis in October, and then if he is victorious. he will face the winner of the fight Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney 2 in February 2026. “Yes, we are waiting for it. It is all about the best fighting the best, and we are here to be strong.
“The only thing now is that we win our next fights, that’s it. It’s the closest so far,” Lopez said when asked how close he is to making the Boots Ennis fight. “At 140 and then we’ll go to 147. We’re talking now with (IBF light welterweight champion) Richardson Hitchins. We’re going to unify.”
I don’t see Lopez’s three-fight deal with Al-Sheikh ending well. Teo stands to make a ton of money but will likely lose to Richardson next and look like a fellow thrown to a hungry shark in October when he faces IBF welterweight champion Boots Ennis.
Turki thinks the losers of the October card will meet in February in what would be a consolation fight in Riyadh. We will probably see Teofimo opposite Haney, with their careers on thin ice.
The Road of 147
“So, two world title fights (Hitchins & Ennis) were lined up and then the prize fight. So, we have a good plan,” said Teofimo. “Yes, we (Hitchins and Teo) know. Yes, we expect big things now. Stay tuned. Very soon,” said Lopez when asked when his fight with Hitchins will take place. That’s the beauty of it. We do everything now. That’s the goal. Do it all and done. My legal team does a great job, and that’s it.
The way Richardson Hitchins dominated IBF 140-lb champion Liam Paro last month on December 7 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, he will beat Teofimo and expose him as a washed-up fighter. Lopez has looked over the hill since his loss to Cambosos Jr. in 2021, and has continued to look bad in repeated performances over the past four years. Teo took a lot of punishment in his win over Vasily Lomachenko in 2020, and he hasn’t been the same since.
