Donaire-Juarez To Be Sanctioned As WBO Title Fight
Dec 9, 2015 • 1:20 AM ET
By Jake Donovan
The scheduled 12-round super bantamweight between Nonito Donaire and Cesar Juarez will officially carry title implications.
Weeks of speculation as to whether a world title would be at stake finally reached confirmation that the fight will be contested for vacant World Boxing Organization (WBO) 122 lb. title. The news was delivered by WBO President Francisco "Paco" Valcarcel during a press conference Wednesday evening.
The bout will take place this Friday in front of a sold-out crowd at Coliseo Roberto Clemente in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Headlining the show is local hero, unbeaten lightweight contender Felix Verdejo versus Brazil's Josenilson Dos Santos.
Both fights will air live on truTV.
The belt was officially declared vacant in late October, when the WBO stripped Guillermo Rigondeaux for failure to honor mandatory title defense obligations or even defend at all in a timely fashion. The unbeaten Cuban southpaw - who soundly out boxed Donaire in April '13 - hadn't fought since last December at the time of the ruling, although he has since returned with a 10-round win over Drian Francisco last month in Las Vegas.
By that point he was nearly one month into his appeal process with the sanctioning body, but formally withdrew said appeal on December 4.
Donaire (35-3, 23KOs) - a former titlist in four weight classes - comes in riding a two-fight win streak after dropping back down to the 122 lb. division. The Fil-Am star briefly reigned as a featherweight beltholder before suffering a brutal knockout loss at the hands of unbeaten Nicholas Walters last October.
Previous title reigns came at flyweight, bantamweight and universal recognition as World super bantamweight champ. The latter run came over a brilliant four-win campaign in 2012 to earn Fighter of the Year honors.
He's since fallen on hard times in the ring, suffering title-losing setbacks to Rigondeaux and Walters, though insists a new outlook on the sport has breathed new life into his career.
Juarez (17-3, 13KOs) enters having won four straight, including back-to-back minor upset victories over Cesar Seda and Julio Sanchez Jr. earlier this year. The showdown marks the first title fight opportunity for the 24-year old from Mexico, who has never been stopped in five-plus years as a pro.
Jake Donovan is the managing editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
Jake Donovan is an award-winning journalist who served as senior writer for BoxingScene from 2007-2024, and news editor for the final nine years of his first tour. He was also the lead writer for The Ring before his decision to return home.
