Jack Catterall could find himself waiting behind another bigger fight despite being promised an immediate title shot. Chris Mannix expects the WBA to simply clear the runway for Teofimo Lopez to face Ryan Garcia.
The WBA has had weeks since Teofimo defeated Rolando Romero to settle the mandatory situation. Teofimo immediately called out Garcia, while Catterall remains stuck in limbo. Mannix points to conflicting written assurances from the sanctioning body as the source of the mess.
“The [WBA] will do anything for a buck. And from what I understand, they have made some mistakes here,” Mannix said on the Mannix and Mora podcast.
“They clearly told Jack Catterall in writing that he is owed an immediate shot at Teofimo or a vacant belt. But from what I understand, they have also put in writing to Teofimo that he doesn’t have to defend his title against Jack Catterall.”
Mannix’s expectation is obvious: the money fight gets the green light.
“The way I see this playing out, the WBA is not going to stand in the way of a unification between Teofimo Lopez and Ryan Garcia,” he said.
Catterall has good reason not to buy another promise. Shakhram Giyasov spent roughly two years waiting for his WBA opportunity before facing Catterall for the secondary welterweight belt, watching Romero chase other paydays despite direct orders to fight him.
Allowing Teofimo to bypass Catterall continues that exact circus under a new champion. Mandatory status becomes nothing more than a placeholder that popular names can ignore at will.
Mannix expects the WBA to approve Lopez against Garcia and order the winner to face Catterall. A unification has obvious commercial appeal, but that solution asks Catterall to trust a system that already left Giyasov out in the cold.
The WBA needs to deliver an enforceable route to the ring. Another promise of being next just leaves him waiting on whichever cash cow comes along afterward.
