Nonito Donaire, a four-division world champion, has tested positive for the coronavirus or COVID-19 and opted to withdraw from his bid to claim the vacant WBC bantamweight title on December 19.
The 38-year-old Fil-Am Donaire was supposed to face Emmanuel Rodriguez of Puerto Rico in the Showtime main event set in Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut.
Rodriguez substituted for France’s Nordine Oubaali, who likewise tested positive for COVID-19 a month back.
The news was first reported by BoxingScene.com, which also mentioned that the fight might still happen with Rodriguez, who lost to the IBF bantamweight title last year to Japanese Naoya Inoue, possibly meeting another Filipino boxer in unbeaten Reymart Gaballo.
The 24-year-old Gaballo, who hails from Polomolok, South Cotabato, has a ring record of 23 wins with 20 knockouts. His last win was against Chaiwat Buatkrathok of Thailand last December 12.
He was set to fight for the World Boxing Association interim bantamweight championship versus Jose Velasquez of Chile – supposed to be an undercard in the Donaire-Rodriguez match.
As for Donaire – known in the boxing world as “The Filipino Flash” – the title fight should have been his return to the ring following a setback to Naoya Inoue of Japan in the finals of the World Boxing Super Series last year.
In that fight, Donaire proved he still has the power, which produced a pair of Knockout of the Year awards this year.