Orlando Salido to fight Takaski Miura at the Forum on Dec. 17
Orlando Salido and Takashi Miura have each participated in two of the best boxing matches of 2016. Now, they’ll close the year together with a chance to top what they’ve done.
Oscar De La Hoya told The Times on Thursday that he’s finalized a World Boxing Council interim super-featherweight title fight on Dec. 17 at the Forum between Japan’s Miura (30-3-2, 23 knockouts) and Mexico’s Salido (43-13-4, 30 KOs).
HBO will televise the bout.
The interim tag applies because Salido’s June opponent, Mexico’s WBC super-featherweight champion Francisco Vargas, is still recovering from their enthralling draw at StubHub Center.
“The winner of this will likely fight Vargas in 2017,†De La Hoya said.
Miura lost his belt to Vargas in the 2015 fight of the year, when Vargas overcame a nasty cut to stop Miura in the ninth round in Las Vegas.
“This can’t miss being a very exciting fight for the fans. I believe it will be another fight of the year,†De La Hoya said.
The best fights so far this year have been Vargas-Salido, the Roman “Chocolatito†Gonzalez-Carlos Cuadras super-flyweight title bout in September and the Carl Frampton-Leo Santa Cruz featherweight title fight in July.
This has the same makings, De La Hoya said, because of Miura’s proven style and limited work since the Vargas loss and the 35-year-old Salido’s proven warrior style.
“These are the fights the fans want to see,†De La Hoya said. “It ends the year with a big bang.â€
He said he had no issues convincing HBO to part with license fee money, saying, “HBO knows quality.â€
De La Hoya, who made his pro debut at the Forum after winning Olympic gold in 1992, now has his first card at the venue as a promoter and said he’s eyeing a possible tripleheader.
Go beyond the scoreboard
Get the latest on L.A.'s teams in the daily Sports Report newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
