Rigondeaux signs with Top Rank

According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, former Cuban amateur standout and undefeated Bantamweight Guillermo Rigondeaux has signed a promotional deal with Top Rank and will be trained by Rinnie Shields.

“We finally got it finished,” Bob Arum told ESPN.com. “It had gotten bogged down over some details but finally everybody has signed off on it. No more legal problems over this right or that right.”

“The kid was the greatest amateur fighter ever and fits in with all these great featherweights,” Arum said. “A guy like that could fight for a title by his 10th fight. In less than a year, he could be in a big event. I saw him in the gym and he’s one of these terrific-trained Cuban fighters, well-schooled, and he technically is better than Gamboa. I don’t know if he punches as hard, but he’s a marvelous prospect. He’s certainly a lot better than a lot of our American kids.”

“It became obvious that the Arum deal was the best deal,” Said Pat English, who is the attorney for Gary Hyde who is Rigodeaux’s manager. “Arum believed he could reach a deal with the DeCubas group, so then people had to work to get a deal that was acceptable to everybody. It’s a deal that is expected to advance Mr. Rigondeaux’s career substantially and quickly.”

“One of the attractive things is that he can fight from 118 pounds to 122 and can easily move up to 126, which opens up tons of potential fights. He just fits in,” Said Carl Moretti of Top Rank. “So we’re bringing in a guy who the TV networks like, who clearly can fight and doesn’t need a lot of development. One or two fights and you put him into the mix and see where it shakes out.”

“We found him an apartment and we’re going to put a lease on it and he should be here by Wednesday,” said Shields, who also trains junior middleweight prospect Erislandy Lara.

“This kid is a really good fighter,” Shields said. “He can fight. I’m trying to get everything situated so when he gets here everything will be set. I looked at some tape of him and went over a few fights and, just looking at him, I know what his style is. He’s a southpaw, but I worked with Pernell, who was also a southpaw. I don’t have any trouble training southpaws. I know what they like to do and what they don’t like to do. [Rigondeaux] is 29 years old, and with as many amateur fights as he has had, it’s like he’s been a professional for a long time. He’s ready to go. He knows how to fight.”