ARUM PLANS DONAIRE-ARCE FIGHT IN MANILA
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 04 Jul 2008
Top Rank promoter Bob Arum says IBF flyweight champion Nonito ?The Filipino Flash? Donaire will have a fight in Mexico in September even as Arum revealed ?we are looking forward to a huge fight between him and Jorge Arce sometime in the first quarter of next year in the Philippines.?
In an overseas telephone conversation with Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today, Arum said he was ? working towards that with various television people. There?ll be huge, huge fights.?
Viva Sports ?Main Event? boxing show panelists Dennis Principe and this commentator spoke to Donaire by overseas telephone and he welcomed the chance to move up in weight and fight Arce saying ?that sounds good.?
Donaire said the one thing he wants to do is move up in weight since ?there is no other challenge, I?m not going to starve myself and lose all that weight to fight as a flyweight.? Donaire said the only reason he stayed at 112 pounds was in the hope of unifying the division and getting the other belts.
However, Donaire?s claim that they only fight other Japanese is being proven by the fact that WBC champion Daisuke Naito will fight No. 13 ranked Tomonobu Shimizu and WBA champion Takefumi Sakata will face No.3 ranked Hiroyuki Hisataka in a July 30 double-header. The Japanese champions have avoided Donaire like the plague prompting him to say ?I don?t care about those guys.?
Donaire who holds both the IBF and IBO belts said his desire to get more belts ?right now is very dim and its hard for me to consider it now.? He said he wants to become a champion at 115 even as he admitted that the guys at that weight ?are very excellent fighters and very competitive. Each one believes that they are the best in the division and they are no afraid to fight.?
IBF Championship Committee chairman Lindsey Tucker had earlier informed Viva Sports that Donaire would fight the winner of the eliminator between No. 6 ranked Moruti ?Baby Face? Mithalane and No.14 ranked Hussein Hussein which takes place in a Branco Milenkovic blockbuster promotion in East London, South Africa on July 5.
Tucker said negotiations for the Donaire mandatory title defense would have to start on July 7 and the two sides will be given thirty days to reach an agreement. If they don?t it would go to a purse bid.
Tucker?s statement came amidst plans for Donaire to move up to super flyweight for the battle against Arce and with the latest pronouncements by both Arum and Donaire it appears that the champion may opt to relinquish his IBF flyweight title.
Arum who recently signed up Donaire said he believes that next to Filipino ring idol and national treasure Manny Pacquiao, Donaire ?is the best fighter out of the Philippines.?
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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