Report: WBO Issues Order For Vacant WBO Super Flyweight Title Bout
With Naoya Inoue moving up in weight and attempting to win a bantamweight world title, his WBO super flyweight world title is vacant and up for grabs.
The governing body has ordered its top two super flyweights, former flyweight world champion Donnie Nietes and Aston Palicte, according to ESPN. The WBO sent a letter to both fighters' promoters on April 30, giving them 10 days to negotiate an agreement. If they don’t make a deal, a purse bid will be ordered with a minimum off of $100,000 required to bid.
Should a fight between Nietes and Palicte for the WBO title be made, it would likely be the second world title fight involving two boxers from the Philippines since 1925. There is already an all-Filipino world title fight scheduled to take place on May 26 on the ESPN+ streaming service: the IBF super flyweight title fight between champion Jerwin Ancajas and mandatory challenger Jonas Sultan.
Nietes, who has yet to lose a boxing match since 2004, has held a world title at minimumweight, light flyweight and flyweight. Nietes' last fight saw him retain the IBF flyweight title by knocking out Juan Carlos Reveco on the televised undercard of HBO's "Superfly 2" event back in February. Nietes recently vacated his title in order to win a world title at super flyweight and if successful, he would be the 18th man in boxing history to win a major world title in four different weight classes.
Palicte, who owns a 24-2 pro boxing record, has won his last four fights, winning the NABF super flyweight title in the process. His last fight took place last December when he defeated Jose Alfredo Rodriguez by TKO.
