Rolando Romero and Teofimo Lopez verbally agree to August fight

WBA welterweight champion Rolando Romero has verbally agreed to face former two-division champion Teofimo Lopez in August, Bad Left Hook's Patrick Stumberg reports.

The matchup, first reported by FightHype's Nick Nunan, would mark Romero's first defense since he upset Ryan Garcia more than a year ago. Lopez last fought in January, when Shakur Stevenson took his lightweight/" class="internal-link text-bone underline decoration-ash/30 hover:decoration-gold underline-offset-2">super lightweight belt in a one-sided rout.

WBA title order now in question

The agreement puts Romero's mandatory defense against Jack Catterall in jeopardy. The WBA recently reinstated its super champion designation and slapped it on Romero, then ordered him to fight Catterall within 180 days of his win over Shakhram Giyasov. An August date with Lopez would blow past that deadline.

On its own, Romero versus Lopez makes sense as a welterweight debut for the former 140-pound champion and a chance for Romero to prove the Garcia win was no fluke. The stylistic wrinkle — Lopez's counter-heavy approach against Romero's unorthodox offense — could produce fireworks.

No contracts have been signed, and the WBA has not formally waived the Catterall order. Both fighters are expected to finalize terms in the coming weeks.

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• Bad Left Hook — Rolando Romero and Teofimo Lopez verbally agree to August title fight