By Jim Dower: A bout between WBC/WBO bantamweight champion Fernando Montiel (43-2-2, 33 KO’s) and Nonito Donaire will be taking place in early 2011, according to Michael Marley at Examiner.com. Top Rank promoter Bob Arum plans on matching Donaire and Montiel up, provided that they win their upcoming bouts. Doniare takes on Wladimir Sidorenko on December 4th at The Pond, Anaheim, California, and Montiel has a bout next month on October 30th against a still to be determined opponent.

Donaire, one of the most talented fighters in the sport, has been totally languishing away for the past three years since beating Vic Darchinyan. To say that Donaire has underutilized is an understatement. There’s so many fights that Donaire should have been in during that time and it’s disappointing that he’s still going to have to wait until early next year to finally get his first big fight since 2007.

Donaire recently stopped Hernan Marquez in the 8th round in July. Montiel, for his part, stopped World Boxing Council bantamweight champion Hozumi Hasegawa in the 4th round in April, and then followed it up with a 3rd round stoppage of Rafael Concepcion in July.

This is the same Concepcion that Donaire struggled against a year in August, winning a 12 round decision but taking a ton of punishment from Concepcion along the way. Donaire will have to fight a lot better against Montiel if he wants to beat him, because he’s too powerful to keep in the fight for 12 rounds. Donaire needs to try and take him out before Montiel gets to him with his big power shots.