Team Pirog Won’t Rule Out N’Dam Mandatory Title Clash
The team of WBO middleweight world champion Dmitry Pirog (20-0) will not rule out a possible fight with undefeated Frenchman Hassan N’Dam (27-0), who on May 4th won a twelve round decision against the tough Ukrainian boxer Maksym “The Tiger” Bursak (24-1) to capture the WBO’s “interim” middleweight crown.
On May 8th, the WBO ordered both sides to reach a deal by May 28th or a purse bid would be ordered.
Although Pirog’s team is interested, the champion’s handlers are currently trying to reach an agreement to face IBF titleholder Daniel Geale in a unification fight on August 25th. HBO is interested in televising the fight.
One thing Pirog will not do is face N’Dam in his backyard of France.
“We would try to arrange a fight in Moscow or in a neutral territory. All of Hassan’s fights have taken place on his land, and we are not unfounded in concerns about the impartiality of the judges. [The scoring in N’Dam’s] fight for the interim-WBA title in October 2010, where [everyone thought] Avtandil Khurtsidze beat Frenchman, and not vice versa, is well documented by the scorecards [which were ruled in favor of N’Dam,” said Kyril Pchelnikov, co-promoter of Pirog.
By Ruslan Chikov