Latest news of Guillermo Rigondeaux

Guillermo Rigondeaux Update

[FONT=Arial Narrow, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]An emergency motion was filed this morning by Guy Spieglman, attorney for WBA junior featherweight beltholder Guillermo Rigondeaux in an attempt to lift an injunction against his fighting of Robert Marroquin on Sept. 15. This motion seeks to allow Rigondeaux to defend his belt against Marroquin. Rigondeaux-Marroquin was scheduled as the undercard of an HBO Pay Per View-televised main event between Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Sergio Martinez at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, but is in jeopardy, according to Pat English, an attorney for Rigondeaux’s Irish promoter, Gary Hyde.
English claims to have received a written order from Miami-Dade County judge David Miller on Thursday which forbids Rigondeaux (10-0, 8 knockouts) from facing Marroquin (22-1, 15 KOs) because the Hyde did not approve this bout. “The original hearing was on our motion to strike [Hyde's contract,] so now we have a motion for a rehearing that is pending,” said Spiegelman. “It’s a procedural thing. The court will probably consider it. I don’t know if the court will reverse itself, but this thing is far from over.”
Spiegelman says Hyde had agreed to share in a five-bout promotional agreement with Top Rank. Spiegelman argues that Rigondeaux-Marroquin is the final bout of the five-fight pact, and that Hyde is trying to extend his contract as a result. “[Hyde] is trying to force Rigondeaux to take other promotional deals so as to extend his contract with him as a manager. I just want to determine [Rigondeaux's rights,]” said Spiegelman.
“So we filed a motion for a rehearing, and I delivered it to the judge today in the Miami trial court, and we’re hoping that the fight goes on. This was all out of a promotional agreement with Top Rank. Hyde consented to five bouts under this promotional agreement.”
Miller has denied Rigondeaux’s motion to strike Hyde’s contract, and enforced Hyde’s request for a two-year injunction against Rigondeaux “prohibiting him from working in the boxing industry except under the management of Gary Hyde”.
“This is the last fight for Rigondeaux that Top Rank is doing to fulfill its contractual obligations. The thing that is baffling to me is that Hyde’s going to get paid, so it’s not like he’s going to get cheated,” said Spiegelman. “So I don’t understand where the irreparable injury is, which is standard for an injunction. Why does he not want the fight to go forward?”
Hyde contends that his contract has been in place with the fighter since he defected from Cuba in 2007 and that Top Rank scheduled the Marroquin fight without his permission in spite of “lucrative offers” from other promoters.
English said that Hyde’s automatic two-year contract extension went into effect when Rigondeaux dethroned Rico Ramos for his current crown in January. But Spiegelman said he believes the terms of the Rigondeaux’s two-year agreement began in November of 2010, when Rigondeaux won the WBA’s interim belt by split-decision over Ricardo Cordoba.
“We feel as if [Rigondeaux's] contract should be terminated this November, because he had an additional two years from when he obtained the championship, which he did in November of 2010,” said Spiegelman. “That being said, we feel that it should expire in November. In fact, the judge, at the hearing, kind of corrected himself and said that there was a factor to be resolved as to when the two years actually ends. He commented that I was correct.”
“We understand Guillermo’s attorney filed an emergency motion with the court that contains new information the court was not aware of,” said David Marroso, Top Rank’s lawyer. “We are waiting to see what the court does before making any decisions.”