Donaire in Extended Wait, May Need Interim Fight
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 06 Feb 2021
While fellow Filipino bantamweights Johnriel Casimero, Reymart Gaballo and Michael Dasmariñas have their respective title fights somehow already in the works, Nonito Donaire stands the prospect of a long wait for his own as WBC titlist Nordine Oubaali reportedly chose a Thai for a possible March defense in Paris.
Donaire, the WBC mandatory challenger, was set to meet Oubaali in April 2020 but the Covid-19 pandemic forced its rescheduling in December.
But the French titleholder tested positive of the Covid-19 virus making him unfit for the fight, supposedly his third title defense. Oubaali was designated as champion in recess for his failure to make the scheduled defense. It was supposedly his first fight since December 2019 when he defended against Takuma Inoue in the undercard of the main event in Japan where Donaire also last saw action in a losing fight versus Naoya Inoue.
The WBC thereafter ordered Donaire and former IBF titlist Puerto Rican Emmanuel Rodriguez to fight for the WBC interim title but Donaire himself was tested positive of the same virus although subsequent later test proved otherwise. Rodriguez went on to face late substitute Filipino Reymart Gaballo for the interim title with Gaballo prevailing via disputed split decision.
Rodriguez and his camp bitterly protested the decision and the WBC ordered a rematch between Rodriguez and Gaballo giving the two parties a deadline within which to negotiate or it will hold a purse bidding itself if no agreement is reached.
Meanwhile, Oubaali upon reportedly recovering from Covid-19 was reinstated by WBC as its regular champion and given the option for an interim fight prior to a mandatory defense versus Donaire. It was recently announced that Oubaali will make his third title defense against Thailand's Nawaphon Kankhaika in March 3 in Paris, condition permitting and the Thai securing entry to the French capital in time for the fight.
In the wake of this development, Donaire stands the prospect of a prolonged wait and ring absence unless he can secure an interim fight himself which he badly needs to shake off the rust of extended inactivity.
If not, Nonito will have to be content with watching and cheering for his fellow Pinoy bantam aces as they battle equally formidable foes in the coming months.
Indeed, we never have so many Pinoy fighters campaigning at top level as now in the bantamweight class. The 118 lbs class before was a traditional waterloo division for our fighters until Luisito Espinosa broke the jinx in 1988 followed in the 2000s by Gerry Peñalosa and Nonito Donaire himself, now on his second tour of duty.
Casimero who was passed over by Bob Arum and Naoya Inoue in a supposed committed unification bout last year, is set to make the second defense of his WBO title against Cuban great Guillermo Rigondeaux possibly this April in the US.
Meanwhile, Dasmariñas is set for his mandatory challenge of Inoue for the Japanese IBF regular championship in Japan. It is not yet clear if Inoue will also put on the line the WBA bantamweight super belt he won from Donaire in December 2019 in Saitama.
As earlier stated, Gaballo will be meeting Rodriguez in a rematch for the WBC interim bantamweight title in a date and venue yet to be agreed upon by the two parties.
Of course, it would be preferable if Donaire could be included in the undercards of any of these fights, against a decent opponent that would serve as his tune up.
Perhaps, Manny Pacquiao through his MP Promotions headed by Sean Gibbons could pull some strings to have Nonito and another Filipino top bantamweight prospect Mike Plania be included in the Casimero fight versus Rigondeaux.
For as things stand now, Nonito may have to wait for at least the middle of the year at the earliest for his mandatory challenge of Oubaali.
The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.
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