Nonito Donaire passed on Showtime tournament for bigger paycheck
It doesn’t always make sense to be in a high-stakes boxing tournament.
Ring Magazine number four pound-for-pound fighter in the world, Nonito Donaire, will take on former WBA bantamweight champion Wladimir Sidorenko as part of a scheduled Top Rank pay-per-view event and ultimately
earn twice as much as he would have for Showtime’s bantamweight tournament.
The news was confirmed by Donaire’s manager, Cameron Dunkin, in the
Los Angeles Times and presented as the chief reason Donaire chose not to participate in the Showtime tournament. Duncan claimed that Donaire will be awarded $300,000 for Sidorenko, when he was only offered $150,000 for first round participation in
the upcoming bantamweight tournament.
The bantamweight tournament, which features some of the world’s top talent, will kick start 11 December. Of four competitors, the two victors will face off in a final round, and the overall winner is
expected to take on Donaire or fellow bantamweight star Fernando Montiel following their own 19 February bout.
Part of the reason Donaire failed to accept an invitation to the tournament was due to his team negotiating a bout with Montiel, which was confirmed by Top Rank chief Bob Arum recently.
Donaire commented on the events, saying: "I was the first guy they asked to be in that [bantamweight] tournament [...] It wasn't my decision to make. I was a bit upset, but now that they've got me Montiel,
I'm happy. Now I can get Montiel and the tournament winner can fight whoever wins our fight."
Dunkin expects Abner Mares to win the tournament. He faces Vic Darchinyan followed by either Yonnhy Perez or Joseph Agbeko provided he wins. Mares is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions, who are engaged
in a lawsuit with Donaire’s company, Top Rank. The dispute could cause negotiating problems for Donaire, though manager Dunkin refused to acknowledge the matter.
The 19 February bout for Donaire will be on the undercard of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.-Alfonso Gomez.
Tags: