WBO 140lb champion Teofimo Lopez says he is in talks to take on his next unification bout against IBF light heavyweight champion Richardson Hitchins.
Teofimo (21-1, 13 KOs) will then move up to 147 and challenge IBF light heavyweight champion Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis in October on the Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney 2 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. If Lopez beats Ennis, he will face the winner of Garcia-Hani 2 in February 2026 in Riyadh.
Lopez-Hitchins merger
Lopez wouldn’t say if Hitchins (19-0, 7 KOs) has 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 Theofim to face Ennis in October even if Richardson beats him as he is fine with fighters backing out of big fights after losses.
What could be a problem is if Hitchins takes out Theophimus in a humiliating defeat, it will put an end to the fight between him and Boots in October. There’s an excellent chance that Hitchins will dominate Teofimo and make him look worse than George Kambossos Jr., Sandor Martin and Jamain Ortiz did. 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-lossers Steve Claggett and Jamaine Ortiz. The fans overwhelmingly think that Lopez gave away the decision against Jamaine, and likewise for the fight against Sandor Martin.
“I’m looking forward to a very productive year.” “We have a three-match deal that has yet to be revealed, but we look forward to announcing it soon,” said Teofimo Lopez. Fight Hub TV about his signing with Turki Al-Sheikh.
“Yeah, that’s what it looks like, yeah,” Teofimo said when told he’s hearing from Turk that he’ll be fighting Jeron ‘Boots’ Ennis in October, and then if he wins. will face the winner of Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haynie 2 in February 2026. “Yeah, we’re 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 matches, that’s it.” That’s as close as he’s ever been,” Lopez said when asked how close he is to fighting Boots Ennis. “At 140 and then we’re going to 147. We’re talking to (IBF light heavyweight champion) Richardson Hitchins right now. We will unite.”
I don’t see Lopez’s three-fight deal with Al-Sheikh ending well. Theo will make a ton of money but will likely lose to Richardson next time out and look like a dude thrown to a hungry shark in October when he faces IBF light heavyweight champion Boots Ennis.
Turki plans for the losers of the October ticket to meet in February in a consolation bout in Riyadh. We will likely see Teofim face Hani, with both careers on thin ice.
Road to 147
“That’s how two fights for the world title (Hitchins and Ennis) were arranged, and then the fight for the prize. So we have a good plan,” Teofimo said. “Yes, we (Hitchins and Theo) know each other. Yes, we are now looking forward to great things. Stay with us. Very soon,” Lopez said when asked when his fight with Hitchins would take place. That’s the beauty of it. We do everything now. That’s the goal. It’s all over and done with. My legal team is doing a great job, and that’s it.”
The way Richardson Hitchins dominated IBF 140lb champion Liam Parr last month on December 7th in San Juan, Puerto Rico will defeat Teofimo and expose him as a washed-up fighter. Lopez has been looking over the hill since his loss to Kambosos Jr. in 2021, and has continued to look bad in rematches over the last four years. Theo endured major punishment in his win over Vassily Lomachenko in 2020 and hasn’t been the same since.
