Jack Catterall and Richardson Hitchins now have another week to reach a deal for their ordered title eliminator.
BoxingScene.com has confirmed the IBF granted a request to reschedule a purse bid hearing to January 11. The session was due to take place Tuesday but both parties asked for additional time to come to terms or at least find common ground surrounding their junior welterweight elimination contest.
Both boxers are promoted by Matchroom Boxing, who informed the IBF last November of two-way interest to pursue the fight. Public comments made by both, however, suggest anything other than progress made in that regard.
England’s Catterall (28-1, 13KOs) has repeatedly called for a rematch versus Scotland’s Josh Taylor (19-1, 13KOs), the former undisputed junior welterweight champion. Matchroom has reportedly made three separate offers for the fight, which seems to be a greater priority than to reach an agreement with Brooklyn’s Hitchins (17-0, 7KOs).
Taylor defeated Catterall in a questionable split decision in their February 2022 meeting with all four major titles at stake.
It was the last time Taylor successfully defended any of his junior welterweight titles. He was subsequently forced to relinquish the WBA, WBC and IBF belts to instead proceed with a planned rematch versus Catterall. The two were forced to postpone those plans several times and outright cancel, as Taylor instead fought Teofimo Lopez (19-1, 13KOs), who soundly outboxed the Scottish southpaw last June to win the WBO and lineal 140-pound championship.
Catterall ultimately moved on, though at the expense of a 15-month ring absence.
The 30-year-old Chorley-bred southpaw returned to the ring last May on the undercard of the Leigh Wood-Mauricio Lara rematch. His most recent outing came in a twelve-round decision over former three-division titlist Jorge Linares. Their October 21 DAZN main event in Liverpool saw Catterall win by scores of 116-112, 116-112 and 117-111, and Linares subsequently announced his retirement.
Hitchins also won twice in his 2023 campaign. The 2016 Olympian for Haiti—representing his parents’ roots—soundly outpointed John Bauza in their February 4 battle of unbeaten prospects in New York City. Hitchins outclassed former title challenger Jose Zepeda over twelve rounds in their September 24 DAZN main event from Orlando, Florida.
While never specifying Catterall, Hitchins hinted at a potential March return. It could come in an IBF-sanctioned title eliminator, though an opponent has yet to be finalized while the process continues for a potential meeting versus Catterall.
Should the fight move forward, the winner of the fight will become the mandatory challenger to Puerto Rico’s Subriel Matias (19-1, 19KOs), who in the meantime will be afforded a voluntary title defense.
Per IBF Rule 9C, Catterall and Hitchins are now required to honor the ordered title eliminator to avoid disciplinary action handed down by the sanctioning body. Any fighter who abandons the purse bid process or does not honor the outcome will receive a demotion in the rankings plus a six-month probation period where they cannot participate in an IBF-sanctioned fight.
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. X (formerly Twitter): @JakeNDaBox