By James O'Connor
Jason Quigley’s big Las Vegas fight against middleweight star Ryota Murata is in serious danger as the World Boxing Association step in.
It has emerged that the Donegal star was set to fight Murata (14-1) at the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on Saturday, October 20.
When Quigley (14-0) was added to the latest WBA rankings at number nine hours after the news broke, a clash with Murata, 2012 Olympic gold medallist and holder of the WBA ‘regular’ world title, looked all but done.
The fight was to be a voluntary defence from the 32-year-old Japanese star, but the WBA have ordered a purse bid for a mandatory defence versus American Rob Brant.
Although the obligation had been noted in initial reports, the bout with Brant seemed to be swervable until the new obligation had been outlined.
The bids for the fight are scheduled to be in by Monday, August 13, and the minimum bid has been set for $200,000 (€171,500) with a 50-50 split agreed.
While Quigley is reportedly the fight of Murata’s team’s preference, there is no doubt there is a lot of work to do to give the 27-year-old his huge fight.
