By Rick Reeno
After multiple conversations, with multiple parties, in multiple countries, BoxingScene.com was able to figure out the situation with the proposed unification between bantamweight champions Hozumi Hasegawa of the WBC and Fernando Montiel of the WBO.
Montiel's promoter, Fernando Beltran, president of Zanfer Promotions, confirmed to me that a commitment was made to fight Hasegawa on April 30 at Nihon Budokan in Tokyo, Japan. Beltran reached an agreement with Akihiko Honda, president of Teiken Promotions.
"We made a commitment to fight Hasegawa in Japan," Beltran told BoxingScene.com.
Top Rank, who promote Montiel in the United States, were hoping to match him against mandatory/interim-champion Eric Morel of Puerto Rico on the Miguel Cotto-Yuri Foreman undercard on June 5. Montiel does have an outstanding obligation to fight Morel, who won a decision over Gerry Penalosa in February to secure the shot.
BoxingScene touched base with WBO President Francisco “Paco” Valcartcel on Friday afternoon. According to Valcartcel, the WBO will not make a decision as to Montiel's championship status until an official unification request is submitted.
The WBO will consider Montiel's request to postpone the Morel meeting. Morel's promoter, Puerto Rico Best Boxing, is obviously going to push for the WBO to strip Montiel. The unification is one-sided in favor of Monitiel because the WBO is not recognized in Japan. If Hasegawa wins, the WBO title will either stay with Montiel or become vacant [if Montiel doesn’t get stripped].
