Philippines, 10 Oct 2025
  Home >> News

 


BOXERS

CURRENT CHAMPIONS 

FORMER CHAMPIONS   

RATINGS                       

NEWS           

FORUM        

FIGHT GALLERIES        

RING CARD GIRLS        


 
 
News  


Donaire fights Burnett in World Boxing Series inaugurals


PhilBoxing.com




Filipino four-division world champion Nonito Donaire will be facing No. 1 seed and world titleholder Ryan Burnett in the bantamweight division side of the coming World Boxing Series.

The undefeated Burnett, 26, of Northern Ireland (10-0 with 9 KOs), chose Donaire (38-5 with 24 KOs) as his quarterfinal opponent in the 118-pound level of the tournament that also include the welterweight category.

The seedings were handed out Friday during the draft gala that took place on the eve of the cruiserweight encounter between Oleksander Usyk and Murat Gassiev for the undisputed world title at the Rossiya Theater in Moscow.

All 16 competitors were in attendance in the event, including Regis Prograis, who earned the top seeding in the 140-pound tournament division side of the series, ESPN?s senior writer Dan Rafael reported.

"He (Donaire) has been an amazing champion and he is a great fighter. I believe Nonito can bring out the best in me," said Burnett, who will be defending his belt for the second time in he series.

"I know that Ryan's got what it takes, so I am going to be at my best," Donaire, who will be moving down two weight classes to a division he once dominated but has not fought since 2011, said.

Secondary world titlist Naoya Inoue (16-0, 14 KOs), 25, of Japan, who is a three-division titleholder, as No. 2 seed, elected to face former titlist Juan Carlos Payano (20-1, 9 KOs), 34, a southpaw from the Dominican Republic.

Payano has won three fights in a row since losing his world title in to Rau'shee Warren in June 2016.

World titleholder Zolani Tete (27-3, 21 KOs), a 30-year-old southpaw from South Africa, will make his third defense against Russian prospect Mikhail Aloyan (4-0, 4 KOs), a 29-year-old southpaw.

Emmanuel Rodriguez (18-0, 12 KOs), 25, of Puerto Rico, anther world champ was given the No. 4 seed and will make his first defense against mandatory challenger Jason Moloney (17-0, 14 KOs), 27, of Australia.

Prograis (22-0, 19 KOs), 29, a southpaw who fights out of Houston, picked former lightweight titlist Terry Flanagan as his opening-round opponent in a tournament where two world titles will be at stake.

Also to be awarded is the Muhammad Ali Trophy which awaits the most outstanding performer in the tournament which begins in the fall.

"We are fighting for the Ali trophy, and Ali is a legend. He fought the best of the best, and I want to fight the best of the best," Prograis said. "Flanagan is a former world champion, and that's why I made this decision."

Flanagan (33-1, 13 KOs), a 29-year-old southpaw from England, is fighting for his only second outing as a junior welterweight and is coming off a June 9 decision loss to Maurice Hooker for a vacant world title.

Second seed Josh Taylor (13-0, 11 KOs), 27, of Scotland, meets Ryan Martin (22-0, 12 KOs), 25, of Cleveland.

World titleholder Kiryl Relikh (22-2, 19 KOs), 28, of Belarus, the No. 3 seed, makes his first mandatory defense against former titlist Eduard Troyanovsky (27-1, 24 KOs), 38, of Russia.

No. 4 Ivan Baranchyk (18-0, 11 KOs), 25, also of Russia, will face Anthony Yigit (21-0-1, 7 KOs), 26, of Sweden, for a vacant world title.

There will be a third tournament in a division to be announced in the WBS second season. All three tournaments will air on the new DAZN all-sports streaming service, which is scheduled to launch in the United States on Sept. 10.

Photo: Nonito Donaire Jr (R) with his wife Rachel and Ryan Burnett (L) with his partner in Moscow.


Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.


Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:

  • “Pitbull” Cruz Battles Skilled Lamont Roach Next!
    By Carlos Costa, , Fri, 10 Oct 2025
  • Eddie Hearn Warns: Dana White's Push to Amend Ali Act Could Hide Fighter Revenues and Undermine Boxer Protections
    By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Fri, 10 Oct 2025
  • SEBASTIAN "EL TRUENO" JUAREZ TRAINING CAMP NOTES
    , Fri, 10 Oct 2025
  • WBC No. 2 Cruiserweight Ryan Rozicki reinjured
    , Fri, 10 Oct 2025
  • DAVE ALLEN VS ARSLANBEK MAKHMUDOV SHEFFIELD PRESS CONFERENCE QUOTES
    , Fri, 10 Oct 2025
  • HANOI OPEN DAY TWO: CHUA, GORST, BIADO, SHAW AND DUONG CRUISE INTO LAST 64 IN HANOI
    , Fri, 10 Oct 2025
  • BOSTAN AND FAWAZ TRADE VERBAL BLOWS IN SHEFFIELD CITY CENTRE FACE-OFF AHEAD OF TITLE REMATCH – LIVE ON DAZN
    , Fri, 10 Oct 2025
  • Yoelvis Gomez Set to Face Unbeaten Antraveous Ingram in Title Clash on DAZN
    , Fri, 10 Oct 2025
  • Dante Kirkman Set to Make Southern California Debut Against Power Puncher Wesley Vanderlinden on October 23 at Fight Club OC
    , Fri, 10 Oct 2025
  • 8th AQ Prime FIDE Standard Open chessfest slated
    By Dong Secuya, , Thu, 09 Oct 2025
  • A Filipino and an American Homecoming
    By Emmanuel Rivera, RRT, , Thu, 09 Oct 2025
  • Tragedy Strikes Again: Arturo Gatti Jr., Son of Boxing Legend, Found Dead at 17 in Mexico
    By Dong Secuya, , Thu, 09 Oct 2025
  • Golden State Making a Bid for NBA Title
    By Teodoro Medina Reynoso, , Thu, 09 Oct 2025
  • JOHANN CHUA LAUNCHES TITLE DEFENCE WITH DOMINANT START IN HANOI | 2025 HANOI OPEN POOL CHAMPIONSHIP
    , Thu, 09 Oct 2025
  • RED-HOT CUBAN MIDDLEWEIGHT YOENLI HERNANDEZ: “I’M READY WILLING AND ABSOLUTELY ABLE TO FACE THE BIG NAMES IN MY DIVISION.”
    , Thu, 09 Oct 2025
  • BOOTS ENNIS GOES HEAD-TO-HEAD WITH LIMA AHEAD OF 154LB DEBUT – LIVE ON DAZN
    , Wed, 08 Oct 2025
  • ALLEN AND MAKHMUDOV MEET FOR FIRST FACE-OFF IN SHEFFIELD AHEAD OF HUGE HEAVYWEIGHT SHOWDOWN – LIVE ON DAZN
    , Wed, 08 Oct 2025
  • Amateur Boxer Tyrone Welch Dies After Match in Saginaw
    By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Wed, 08 Oct 2025
  • AJ Lim Captures Fourth PCA Men’s Singles Title, Extends Dominance in Philippine Tennis
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Wed, 08 Oct 2025
  • THRILLA IN MANILA GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY 18: JOE FRAZIER VS. GEORGE FOREMAN FIRST ENCOUNTER - THE SUNSHINE SHOWDOWN
    By Maloney L. Samaco, , Wed, 08 Oct 2025
  • 5th Zhengxing Cup Philippine Xiangqi Rapid Open tournament on October 12
    By Marlon Bernardino, , Wed, 08 Oct 2025
  • Joey Canoy back in training; preparing to face IBF champ Beaven Sibanda in February
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 08 Oct 2025
  • RED OWL BOXING ANNOUNCES BROADCAST TEAM AND FULL FIGHT CARD FOR THIS FRIDAY NIGHT’S “BOXFEST XVI”
    , Wed, 08 Oct 2025
  • Tyson Fury back in 2026?
    By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Tue, 07 Oct 2025
  • THE PAST WEEK IN ACTION 6 OCTOBER 2025: Cecilia Braekhaus Retires After Defeating Ema Kozin
    By Eric Armit, , Tue, 07 Oct 2025




  •  



     
    PhilBoxing.com has been created to support every aspiring
    Filipino boxer and the Philippine boxing scene in general.
    Please send comments to feedback@philboxing.com


    PRIVATE POLICY | LEGAL DISCLAIMER
    developed and maintained by dong secuya
    © 2025 philboxing.com.