WBC approves Nonito Donaire-Alejandro Santiago fight for vacant title

Nonito Donaire Jr. gets a title shot after the World Boxing Council (WBC) approved his fight with Mexico’s Alejandro Santiago for the vacant bantamweight belt.

The development came during a recent interview with WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman with ESPN Knockout, although critical details such as the date and venue would still have to be finalized.

With the fight, Donaire is expected to break another record after becoming the oldest fighter to win a bantamweight title in May 2021 at the expense of Morocco’s Nordine Oubaali when he was 38 years old.

Now 40, he boasts of a 42-7 win-loss record including 28 knockouts.

Another victory for Donaire would set him another record by entering his fourth bantamweight title reign.

His last fight, though, was when he relinquished his belt to Naoya Inoue in Saitama, Japan in June last year with a second-round knockout.

The 27-year-old Santiago, for his part, totes a 27-3-5 mark including 14KOs and is slated to enter his second career title fight.

The Tijuana native held then-IBF junior bantamweight titlist Jerwin Ancajas to a 12-round draw in September 2018 in California.

Donaire and Santiago would be vying for one of the four titles left behind by former undisputed champ Inoue.