WBO 140lb champion Teofimo Lopez says he is in talks for 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 welterweight champion Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis in October on the Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney 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 unification
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 highly likely that Turki Al-Sheikh will still allow Teofim to face Ennis in October even if Richardson beats him as he is on board with fighters entering big fights after defeats.
What could be a problem is if Teofima blows Hitchins out in a humiliating defeat, it will taint the fight between him and Boots in October. There’s an excellent chance that Hitchins will dominate Teofimo and make him worse than George Kambosos Jr., Sandor Martin and Jamaine Ortiz all looked. Will Turki still want to use Theo for October to throw him in the ring with Boots Ennis?
That would be tantamount to rewarding defeat. Lopez has looked terrible in his last two fights against Steve Claggett and Jamaine Ortiz who has seven losses. Fans overwhelmingly think Lopez got a gifted decision against Jamaine, and the same goes for his fight against Sandor Martin.
“I’m looking forward to a very productive year. We have a three-fight contract that we have yet to reveal, but we look forward to announcing it soon,” Teofimo Lopez told Fight Hub TV on his signing for Turki Al-Sheikh.
“Yeah, it looks like that, yeah,” Teofimo said when told he had heard from the Turk that he would fight Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis in October, and then if he wins. will face the winner of the Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney 2 fight 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 the next fights, that’s it. It’s as close as it gets to then,” Lopez said when asked how close he is to fighting Boots Ennis. “At 140 and then we’re going to 147. Right now we’re talking to [IBF light welterweight champion] Richardson Hitchins. Let’s unite.”
I don’t see Lopez’s three-fight deal with Al-Sheikh ending well. Teo will make a ton 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 light heavyweight champion Boots Ennis.
Turki plans for the losers of the October card to meet in February in what would be a consolation bout in Riyadh. We will likely see Teofim face Haney, and both their careers are on thin ice.
Road to 147
“So, two fights for the world title [Hitchins & Ennis] lined up and fighting for prizes. So we have a good plan,” said Teofimo. “Yes, we [Hitchins and Teo] to know each other. Yes, we are looking forward to big things right now. Stay with us. 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. Everything is finished and finalized. My legal team is doing a great job and that’s it.”
The way Richardson Hitchins dominated IBF 140lb champion Liam Parra last month on December 7th in San Juan, Puerto Rico, he will defeat Teofimo and expose him as a washed up fighter. Lopez has been looking over the hill since his loss to Kambosos Jr. 2021, and has continued to look bad in repeat appearances over the past four years. Teo took a lot of punishment in his win over Vasiliy Lomachenko in 2020 and it hasn’t been the same since.
