Teofimo Lopez Jr. is no longer in a position where he can have his cake and eat it, too.

A ruling by the WBO has called for the two-division and reigning Ring junior welterweight champion to next honor his mandatory title defense obligation. Specifically, Lopez (21-1, 13 KOs) must face the winner of the Feb. 15 Jack Catterall-Arnold Barboza Jr. interim WBO title fight. A 180-day window from fight night was provided to honor the ordered title defense.

As previously reported by The Ring, Catterall-Barboza was approved by the WBO as an interim title fight—an upgrade from a final eliminator—due to the uncertainty of Lopez’s next title defense. Lopez has not fought since a twelve-round, unanimous decision win over Steve Claggett (39-8-2, 27 KOs) in a voluntary defense last June 29 in Miami Beach, Florida.

His failure to inform the WBO of his next move has now positioned Lopez to where he will have to honor his mandatory or vacate the title.

“Failure to comply with the conditions outlined herein will result in triggering this Committee intervention for the enforcement of the WBO regulations of World Championship Contests,” WBO Championship Committee chairman Luis Batista-Salas stated in a Jan. 28 ruling submitted to Lopez, Catterall, Barboza and their respective teams. “The conditions herein are incorporated by reference in the official sanction letter for Catterall/Barboza bout with full force and effect.”

England’s Catterall (30-1, 13 KOs), The Ring’s No. 2 junior welterweight contender, and Los Angeles’ Barboza (31-0, 11 KOs), No. 9 at 140, will meet atop a Feb. 15 DAZN show from Co-op Live in Manchester, England. This ruling provides a safety net for the winner, with the worst-case scenario of an upgrade to full WBO titlist by default.

The best-case option is a lucrative showdown with Lopez, who has other—but not finalized—plans.

Lopez is current in talks with IBF titlist Richardson Hitchins (19-0, 7 KOs), The Ring’s No. 4 junior welterweight contender, for a unification bout eyed sometime in the second quarter of 2025. A deal is not quite close enough—or at all—to the point where Lopez can have time to enter that fight and defend against the Catterall-Barboza winner.

There is the possibility that Lopez could just relinquish the WBO belt and defend The Ring championship against Hitchins. Such a move would end a title reign that dates back to his June 2023 decision win over Scotland’s Josh Taylor (19-2, 13 KOs) at Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater in New York City.

Lopez previously held The Ring lightweight championship and full versions of the WBA, IBF and WBO titles. The win over Taylor saw him become a two-division king one month shy of his 26th birthday.

Just two fights have followed, both in 2024 but none since the win over Claggett.

Catterall and Barboza have remained at the top of the WBO contender queue with productive 2024 campaigns.

Catterall earned a twelve-round win over Taylor last May 25 in Leeds, England. It avenged his lone career defeat, when a then-unbeaten Taylor claimed a controversial split decision win in a Feb. 2020 RING/undisputed championship defense in Glasgow, Scotland.

The revenge-fueled win over Taylor was followed by Catterall’s terrific performance in a twelve-round, unanimous decision over former two-time 140-pound titlist Regis Prograis (29-3, 24 KOs) last Oct. 26 at Co-op Live.

Barboza picked up his most notable win to date in his most recent contest. The 33-year-old Southern California native outpointed former unified junior welterweight titlist Jose Ramirez over ten rounds last Nov. 16 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.