by Ronnie Nathanielsz

WBO light flyweight champion Donnie Nietes is ready to face mandatory challenger Moises Fuentes possibly in the Top Rank fight card in Macau on February 22.

ALA Promotions president Michael Aldeguer said he had received a letter from Luis Batista-Salas, chairman of the WBO Championship Committee on Wednesday in which both ALA Promotions and Mexico’s Zanfer headed by Fernando Beltran were given “30 days to negotiate an agreement” for the rematch otherwise “if an accord is not reached within the time frame, a Purse Bid will be ordered.”

The WBO stated that “any of the parties involved may call f or a purse bid at any time during the negotiation process.”

Should negotiations fail they would have to go to a purse bid with a minimum set at $80,000.

Under the rules the champion is entitled to 75 percent of the winning purse bid and the challenger 25 percent although at times both parties could agree to amend the split.

Aldeguer said he had spoken to Arum about a world title fight in Macau during the recent WBO International welterweight title fight in which Manny Pacquiao scored a handsome twelve round victory over Brandon “Bam Bam” Rios.

Aldeguer said he would get in touch with Arum and also “try to talk to Beltran also” about the Macau fight.

He said Nietes who is coming off an impressive 3rd round  TKO over Mexico’s former world minimum weight champion Sammy “Guty” Gutierrez “is ready and willing” to defend his title against Fuentes in Macau.

Their first clash on March 2 this year at the Waterfront Hotel and Casino in Cebu  ended in a close majority draw with American judges Adlaide Byrd and Pat Russell scoring the fight a 114-114 draw while Filipino judge Danrex Tapdasan whom the Fuentes camp had  objected to before the fight scoring it  for Nietes 115-113.