By Eric Thomas: WBC/WBO bantamweight champion Nonito Donaire could end up back at his old promotional company Top Rank after the company reportedly won the first part of the legal hurdle with Golden Boy Promotions on Monday in their fight over which promotional company gets Donaire.

Arbitrator Daniel Weinstein, a former California Superior Court judge, made a decision yesterday. The judge decided that Golden Boy had violated an earlier agreement between them and Top Rank about the two companies not trying to take each other’s fighters.

Golden Boy Promotions recently signed Donaire to a contract. However, Bob Arum of Top Rank is saying that his contract with Donaire was still intact and that he still has time left on it before it’s up. Donaire originally signed with Top Rank in 2008. However, there is a clause in the contract that adds on time to the contract if the fighter is injured, according to Kevin Iole at Yahoo Sports News.

Donaire apparently was injured for much of his first year of his contract with Top Rank. As such, there is that time that might have to be made up by having the contract extended into 2012. There is also a one year option in the contract, and Top Rank plans on exercising that option.

The contract then extends into 2013. In another words, Donaire is looking at another two years with Top Rank. Donaire will be in a great position with Top Rank to possibly get some interesting fights if Arum is willing to match Donaire with two of his other big stars in the next two years with Yuriorkis Gamboa and Juan Manuel Lopez.

Those guys are fighting at two divisions above Donaire right now at featherweight. However, Donaire is already planning on moving up in weight soon to super bantamweight and in the near future, he could find himself fighting at featherweight. It would be great if Arum could put Donaire in with at least one of those two big stars before Donaire’s contract runs out in 2013.

Donaire will be 30-years-old by then, which is still in his prime but getting on in years. He’ll have a few good years left in him if he decides he doesn’t want to fight for Top Rank anymore at that time. Hopefully, Donaire doesn’t get injured again.