Arum: Fight Was Very Close, Donaire Had Weight Issues

by Bill "Two Scoops" Emes

Guillermo Rigondeaux (12-0, 8KOs) retained his WBA super bantamweight championship and added the WBO super bantamweight belt, unanimously outpointing Nonito Donaire (31-2) on Saturday night at Radio City Music Hall in New York City - with winning scores of 114-113, 115-112 and 116-111. Rigo overcame being knocked down twice in the opening minute of the 10th round in a performance that had some booing the lack of action.

Many of the fans at home saw the fight as a widespread win for Rigondeaux, but Top Rank's CEO Bob Arum, who promotes both boxers, felt it was very close and took a shot at HBO's unofficial judge Harold Lederman.

"I had Donaire ahead going into the eleventh round, but gave Rigondeaux the last two rounds. Donaire clearly lost the last two rounds. I had him winning by one point. HBO had it a shutout and [the fans] listened [to that]. What did Lederman say going into the fight? He said Rigondeaux was going to win the fight running away [by a big margin], so then he sees the fight and he sees it the way he predicts," Arum said.

The veteran promoter felt Donaire struggled badly with making the 122-pound weight limit and he needs to move up to featherweight.

"I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that he had trouble making weight. He has to go up. He blew off the fighters' meetings and had to sweat it out to come down and make the weight. He has to come up in weight," Arum said.

After the fight, Donaire said he was suffering from a shoulder injury that was bothering him for a very long time and he plans to get surgery. Arum had never heard about the shoulder until the media presented their questions.

"What shoulder? That's the first I'm hearing of that," Arum said.