Coppinger, for The Ring: Lopez Has the Right to Apply vs. Garcia

Label: REPORTED · Heat: WARM. This is a source report, not a WBA announcement, and it is not a signed fight. Mike Coppinger, writing for The Ring and citing sources, reports: "The WBA has notified all relevant parties that Teofimo Lopez has the right to apply for a special permit to unify against Ryan Garcia in a super fight." He adds that Lopez "was ordered to defend against Jack Catterall but is looking to unify against Garcia, the WBC titleholder, in a fight being discussed for Feb. 6."

The Ring posted the same report, attributing it to "sources tell The Ring's @MikeCoppinger," and writes that Lopez "is looking to unify the 147lb titles against Garcia, the WBC titleholder, in a fight being discussed for Feb. 6." Both posts carry uncredited portrait graphics, so we are linking them rather than embedding them.

There is still no WBA statement on this new notice. The permit has not been granted — Coppinger and The Ring describe a right to apply, not an approved unification. Nothing is signed, and Feb. 6 remains a date under discussion. That date talk was already in 324, when Coppinger said the fight was "not done yet."

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What is already official is in Kimster 309: the WBA's Nov. 11 resolution reaffirmed the Catterall mandatory, gave the camps 10 days to agree or propose an alternative, with a purse bid after that, and said unifications "may be considered" via special permit under Rule C.39, but that no formal request had been filed as of the ruling. We are not re-reporting that ruling here. SI's Chris Mannix later reported that Lopez's camp says it filed a request on Nov. 5, a claim also carried by BoxingScene and MiddleEasy and already noted in 309's follow-up, 313.

This is also the path 328 flagged: Catterall is Eddie Hearn's fighter, and Hearn said he "would sue them immediately" if the WBA lets Lopez keep the belt for Garcia. No lawsuit has been filed, and no permit has been granted.

Fighter pages: Teófimo López, Ryan García, Jack Catterall.

If a purse ever does get posted for Lopez-Garcia or Lopez-Catterall, take a swing at Guess the Purse. Until either one is official, the welterweight date already on the calendar is Haney-Paro — log a pick in Fight Picks.

A right to apply is not a yes. Does this get Lopez a unification, or does Catterall's mandatory still come first? Tell us in the comments.

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