Teofimo Lopez Q&A: “I’M ONLY INTERESTED IN MEGAFIGHTS” By Joseph Santoliquito T eofimo Lopez Jr. has an amazing ability to reinvent himself. Case in point: Over the first eight months of 2026, Lopez went from the possible nadir of his career back to the top. In January, he was outclassed in a unanimous decision loss to Shakur Stevenson, who lifted the Ring and WBO junior welterweight belts. But in his very next fight, Lopez outpointed Rolando “Rolly” Romero for the WBA welterweight title. The Romero victory sets up a possible 2027 bout between Lopez (23-2, 13 KOs) and popular WBC titleholder Ryan Garcia. When The Ring spoke to Lopez in September, talks were already underway between the two camps, with options including a January 2027 fight at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles or a Cinco de Mayo weekend event in Las Vegas. Lopez and Garcia both crave the fight. Both would like to shut the other’s big mouth and claim they rule the rich 147-pound division. However, Lopez’s path to this superbout has a roadblock in the form of his WBA mandatory, Jack Catterall. Lopez says he has no interest in The Ring’s No. 4-rated contender. “I’m only interested in megafights, and the only fight out
there right now that means anything to me is Ryan Garcia,” said Lopez. “Jack Catterall means nothing to me. He’s a mandatory. I only want megafights the rest of my career.” At the time of writing, Lopez had until October 22 to make a deal with Catterall. Lopez said he had no intention of vacating the WBA title, and the assumption within the industry was that Catterall would step aside. But as The Ring went to press, the Englishman remained steadfast in his pursuit of his promised title shot, even suggesting that he and Lopez settle business on the December 11 Tyson Fury- Anthony Joshua undercard. In the meantime, Lopez has welcomed a new addition to his family, daughter Ella Bloom Lopez, and is reasserting more control over his team. He openly admitted he was not right going into the Stevenson fight. His father and trainer, Teofimo Sr., blames himself:
A decision triumph over Rolando Romero in Las Vegas made Teofimo Lopez a three-weight world champion.
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