ROMAN GONZALEZ will fight Srisaket Sor Rungvisai in a rematch on September 9, according to the WBC.
Nicaraguan great Gonzalez was knocked off the pound-for-pound top spot by Sor Rungivsai back in March when the unfancied Thai fighter dropped and outpointed him in an absolute war.
The WBC, whose super-flyweight world title Sor Rungvisai won from ‘Chocolatito’, ordered a rematch after Gonzalez’ promoters appealed for one and things are progressing well.
Gonzalez never folded in the first fight and there were some breath-taking exchanges, making the contest a frontrunner for Fight of the Year.
As such, a rematch will headline a show of its own, whereas their first fight came as chief support to Gennady Golovkin’s win over Danny Jacobs. HBO are set to broadcast.
The original plan had been for the Gonzalez-Sor Rungvisai winner to fight Carlos Cuadras – who Roman defeated last year to initially win the WBC super-flyweight crown, a world title in a fourth weight class for the Nicaraguan – however the WBC has changed that ruling.
Instead, Cuadras has been ordered to fight another Gonzalez victim, Juan Francisco Estrada, to determine a WBC ‘interim’ champion while Gonzalez and Sor Rungvisai serve medical suspensions after their gruelling affair.
Estrada was outpointed by Gonzalez in a 2012 barnburner before unifying two titles at flyweight and then moving to super-flyweight last year.
It is being reported that the Cuadras-Estrada fight will take place on the same bill as Gonzalez-Sor Rungvisai, one week before Gennady Golovkin meets Canelo Alvarez in the most important fight of 2017.
The WBC will then order the winners of these two respective fights to meet each other, setting up some mouth-watering bouts in what is arguably the most exciting weight class in boxing today.
