By Jeff Aranow: The management WBO bantamweight champion Zolani Tete (26-3, 21 KOs) and Omar Narvaez (47-2-2, 25 KOs) have reportedly reached an agreement in their negotiations for a fight that could take place in London, UK in February.
This will be Tete’s second defense of his WBO title. He recently destroyed Siboniso Gonya by a 1st round knockout in his first defense last November.
Tete’s management would like to fight a unification match against IBF/WBA bantamweight champion Ryan Burnett. However, Burnett’s promoter Eddie Hearn isn’t ready to make that fight. He feels there’s not enough money in the fight right now to justify the risk for Burnett.
The Argentinian Narvaez, 42, is the mandatory challenger for Tete. Narvaez is looking to capture his third career world title. The 2-time Olympian Narvaez has been fighting as a pro for 17 years since turning pro in 2000. His pro career would have been much longer if he hadn’t spent so much time in the amateur ranks. Narvaez turned professional at 25, which is fairly late compared to most fighters.
Here’s what World Boxing Organization president Paco Valcarcel had to say on his social media site:
”Tete vs. Narvaez have come to an agreement, purse bid canceled. Narvaez probably will fight in London early Feb 2018.”