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WBO 140-lb champion Teofimo Lopez says he is in talks for another unification bout against IBF light-welterweight champion Richardson Hitchins to happen next.
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 Haynie 2 card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. If Lopez beats Ennis, he will face the winner of Garcia-Haney 2 in February 2026. in Riyadh.
Lopez-Hitchins Reunion
Lopez wouldn't say if Hitchins (19-0, 7 KOs) needs to win the unification fight as a condition 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 is fine with fighters coming into big fights after defeats.
What could be a problem is that if Teofimo gets blown out by Hitchins in a humiliating defeat, it will taint the fight between him and Boots in October. There is an excellent chance Hitchins can dominate Teofimo and make him look worse than George Cambosos Jr., Sandor Martin and Jamaine Ortiz. Will Turki still want to use Theo for October to throw him in the ring with Boots Ennis?
That would be equivalent to rewarding defeat. Lopez has looked awful in his last two fights against seven-loss journeyman Steve Claggett and Jamaine Ortiz. Fans overwhelmingly believe that Lopez got 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 hasn't been revealed yet, but we're looking forward to announcing it very soon,” Teofimo Lopez told Fight Hub TV for his signing with Turki Al-Sheikh.
“Yeah, it looks like it, yeah,” Teofimo said when told he heard from Turki that he would fight Jaron “The Boots” Ennis in October and then if he wins. he will face the winner of the Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney 2 fight in February 2026. “Yes, we are looking forward to it. It's all about the best fighting the best and we're here to be strong.
“The only thing now is to win our next fights, that's it. This is as close as we can get until then,” Lopez said when asked how close he is to the Boots Ennis fight. “At 140 and then we're going to 147. We're talking to (IBF welterweight champion) Richardson Hitchins at the moment. We will unite.”
I don't see Lopez's three-fight deal with Al-Sheikh ending well. Teo will make a lot of money but is likely to lose to Richardson next time out and will look like a friend thrown to a hungry shark in October when he faces IBF welterweight champion Boots Ennis.
Turki plans for the losers of the October card to meet in February in what would be a consolation fight in Riyadh. We'll likely see Teofimo take on Haynie, with both their careers on thin ice.
The road to 147
“So there were two world title fights (Hitchins & Ennis) and then the prize fight. So we have a good plan,” Teofimo said. “Yes, we (Hitchins and Theo) know each other. Yes, we are expecting great things right now. Stay tuned. Very soon,” Lopez said when asked when his fight with Hitchins would take place. That's the beauty of it. We're doing everything right now. That's the goal. Getting it all over and done with. My legal team is doing 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 looked over the hill after his loss to Cambosos Jr. in 2021. and he has continued to look bad in repeat performances over the last four years. Theo took a lot of punishment in his 2020 win over Vasyl Lomachenko. and it hasn't been the same since.
