With neither sanction from the Trinidad and Tobago Boxing Board of Control (T&TBBC) nor the World Boxing Association (WBA), promoter Boxu Potts announced yesterday that female fighter Ria Ramnarine would contest a rematch against Venezuelan Ana Fernandez on December 26.

At a press conference yesterday at Mas Camp Pub in Woodbrook, matchmaker Potts informed the media that he would continue to defy the governing body, the World Boxing Association, and bypass the mandatory defence against Mexican Ibeth Zamora Silva, who won an unanimous decision against Fernandez in their WBA mini flyweight fight back on September 5.

Following Ramnarine’s controversial split-decision victory over Fernandez on July 31 for the WBA interim world title-labelled a hometown decision-the WBA had ordered a rematch between Ramnarine and Fernandez to take place on that date (September 5) in Panama.

However, Potts claimed that Ramnarine could not fight in Panama due to medical reasons, which the WBA eventually accepted before ruling that the T&T pugilist was to meet the winner of the Zamora/Fernandez fight.

In August, Potts said the Ramnarine camp’s plans were to ’continue training, have Ria in the best condition, to ready herself for the outcome of that fight’, a bout the WBA had given a deadline date of November 5.

But Potts made an about-turn yesterday, advising an originally-planned October 31 bout had passed and now his priority would be the re-match between Ramnarine and Fernandez on Boxing Day.

’This fight (Ramnarine/Fernandez) has generated a lot of national interest and it is obligatory on our part that we bring this fight back to this nation,’ Potts declared.

’The WBA have instructed us to fight Ibeth Zamora... I say no. The WBA could take Ibeth Zamora and shove it.’

Potts said Zamora’s interim title has contravened the WBA’s own rules.

’We are not going to fight her and that’s the end of story,’ he emphasised.

Potts stated that the success of the fight also depended on overcoming another challenge, that of gaining the approval of the T&TBBC.

’We have made an application to the Ministry of Sport for funding... and we have applied to T&TBBC who have not responded. And I’m calling this fight pending the approval of the Board.

’I don’t know there is anything standing in the way not to approve this fight, but thus far I have not gotten an answer and I don’t like how it looks. The Board must come out and let the nation know more about the approval of this upcoming event,’ Potts stated.