A title fight for the vacant WBC bantamweight title has been pushed back yet again.
The fight, which now will have Nordine Oubaali taking on Rau'Shee Warren, will now take place on January 19, 2019 as reported by L'Equipe. The two boxers would fight on the pay-per-view card that will be headlined by Manny Pacquiao vs. Adrien Broner for the WBA "regular" welterweight title.
The title bout was reportedly supposed to take place on the untelevised undercard for the December 22 PBC card taking place in Brooklyn, New York. The reason for the delay is to suit Ali Oubaali, Nordine's brother and coach, as the new date would allow Ali to be in the corner of former Olympic gold medalist Estelle Mossely for her third pro fight on December 22.
The report would signify the latest delay in crowning a new world champion after the title had been vacant throughout the majority of 2018. The belt was previously held by Luis Nery, but he was stripped of the title by the WBC for being overweight for a title defense against Shinsuke Yamanaka on March 1.
The title was supposed to be fought for this summer with Oubaali taking on Petch Sor Chitpattana. The title fight was called off and now Sor Chitpattana is set to face Takuma Inoue on December 30 for the interim WBC bantamweight title. The winner of that fight would then be ordered to fight the winner of Oubaali vs. Warren.
The full card for the January 19 show has not been unveiled but it is being reported that top light heavyweight contenders Badou Jack and Marcus Browne will likely fight there as well. The card is taking place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
