Lopez beats Romero then snubs Catterall fight
American Teofimo Lopez beats Rolando Romero in Las Vegas to claim the WBA welterweight title then seemingly snubs number one challenger Jack Catterall.
American boxer Teofimo Lopez claimed the WBA Super welterweight world title by defeating Rolando Romero in a majority decision at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Lopez, a three-division world champion, did not immediately announce his first defense, instead expressing interest in fighting the winner of the upcoming WBC title bout between Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn, or pursuing a unification bout with Australia's IBF champion Liam Paro.
The 29-year-old stated his preference for a later fight against WBO champion Devin Haney. Catterall, who holds the WBA Regular belt, responded to Lopez's victory by declaring his intent to take the belt, although the WBA had plans to overlook him for a unification bout. A cut over Lopez's right eye and a strong right hand in the fifth round marked Romero's comeback, leading to a controversial 114-114 draw from one judge, while the other two judges awarded Lopez the win.
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- Lopez beats Romero but then snubs Catterall fight sports.yahoo.com