WBA Orders Lopez To Face Catterall At Welterweight

The WBA has ordered Teofimo Lopez to defend his welterweight title against Jack Catterall, giving the two camps 30 days to reach terms for a mandatory fight that could derail Lopez's plans for a unification bout with Ryan Garcia.

Lopez, who beat Rolly Romero for the belt last month, had been in talks to face WBC titlist Garcia in February or March, according to Bad Left Hook. The sanctioning body also ordered middleweight/" class="internal-link text-bone underline decoration-ash/30 hover:decoration-gold underline-offset-2">super middleweight champion Jaime Munguia to face Bektemir Melikuziev in a separate mandatory.

Catterall Refuses To Step Aside Again

Catterall has been vocal about refusing to step aside a second time after the WBA previously allowed Lopez to skip the line and fight Romero instead of the Englishman. Lopez reportedly claims WBA president Gilberto Mendoza personally assured him the Catterall fight would not be ordered, contradicting a public statement Mendoza made on Twitter last July that said the opposite.

The matchup presents stylistic challenges for Lopez. Catterall's counter-punching skill set has proven difficult for fighters with vulnerabilities similar to those Lopez has shown in losses to Josh Taylor and Terence Crawford.

Melikuziev has been waiting 16 months for his shot after winning a final eliminator in May 2025. The WBA had reportedly demanded he fight Jose Armando Resendiz before Munguia was allowed to take that fight instead. Chris Mannix reports that Munguia is penciled in for an October 31 fight, likely on the Canelo-Mbilli card, and is seeking an easier opponent than Melikuziev.

Both champions now have until late October to finalize deals with their mandatories or risk losing their titles.

Reported via:

• Bad Left Hook — WBA orders Teofimo Lopez vs Jack Catterall and Jaime Munguia vs Bektemir Melikuziev