MANCHESTER, England – Arnold Barboza Jnr wants to jump straight into a unification contest with IBF champion Richardson Hitchins – if Teofimo Lopez chooses to vacate his WBO title.
Barboza Jnr won the WBO interim junior-welterweight title on Saturday night at the Co-op Live in Manchester by earning a split decision against Jack Catterall. Victory therefore made Barboza Jnr the mandatory challenger for Lopez’s title. The champion must defend his title against him by August 14 or he will be stripped, and see Barboza Jnr elevated to the status of full champion.
It is increasingly expected – including by Barboza Jnr – that Lopez will vacate his title and move up to welterweight. If he does so he is keen to jump straight into a unification showdown with Hitchens. The IBF title holder, 27, earned his title in December when defeating Liam Paro over 12 rounds.
“Of course, 100 per cent [ I want Hitchins],” Barboza Jnr, 33, told BoxingScene. “You know, that’s something that my manager’s going to get on.
“But, of course, man, you know, we’re going to enjoy this. Get back in the gym and see what happens.”
After representing Golden Boy Promotions against the 31-year-old Catterall and Matchroom, Barboza Jnr has hopes that the fight against Hitchins could land on the speculated about Matchroom versus Golden Boy 5 v 5.
“I hope so, because right now it’s Golden Boy one and Matchroom zero,” he said.
Barboza Jnr, regardless, continues to hope for a fight with the high-profile Lopez. When asked at his post-fight press conference whether that fight would happen, however, Barboza Jnr had his doubts.
“I’ve been number one with the WBO for like two years; [Lopez] has been able to pick whoever he wants for the last two years, and he’s picked people with like seven losses,” Barboza Jnr said. “He hasn’t fought anyone in the top one or two, I don’t think he would have fought me or Jack [Catterall].
“I think he vacates the belt. We were with Top Rank, the same promoter [as Lopez], for about two, three years and he didn’t want to take the fight.”
Barboza Jnr’s manager Rick Mirigian insisted that he would be pushing Lopez’s handler Keith Connely and Turki Alalshikh to make the Barboza Jnr fight at the rumored event at Alcatraz Island in June.
Barboza also sent out a warning to the champion.
“Teofimo, your back’s against the wall,” he said. “There’s nothing you can do. So, you either put up or shut up and vacate, bro.”
When discussing the scorecards, he then said: “‘Man, this shouldn’t be this close.’ But, you know what, hey, we’re in his territory – I expected it, you know what I’m saying? So, it is what it is.
“I was fucking worried, I was like, ‘Damn, man, they can’t take this from me’. Because I just felt so good, I didn’t feel him land anything significant. No disrespect, I just didn’t feel anything to get me worried about.
“There’s no reason to come out here and fight him [in a rematch] unless he gets a belt or something, because we are on to the next level, we’re on to something else. There’s no reason for us to fight him again, not now.”
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