Las Vegan Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo, who on May 7 engaged in one of the great fights in boxing history, will meet for a third time in less than a year when they fight on Feb. 4, promoters said Friday.
While a site has not been chosen, Castillo promoter Bob Arum and Corrales promoter Gary Shaw said the fight is likely to be in Texas.
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Arum said Las Vegas is under consideration, but only minimally. He said they're looking at sites in Houston, San Antonio and El Paso, Texas.
Corrales stopped Castillo in the 10th round on May 7 in a remarkable comeback, getting up after being knocked down twice earlier in the round to stop Castillo and win the WBC and WBO lightweight titles.
Castillo, who generated a huge controversy by failing to make the 135-pound weight limit at the weigh-in before the Oct. 8 rematch, knocked Corrales out in the fourth round.
Corrales said he didn't want to make excuses, but said not having to get down to 135 gave Castillo an advantage.
"We're both big guys and it takes its toll on your body getting those pounds off," Corrales said. "If one guy has to do it and one guy doesn't, it gives the other guy a slight edge."
The Oct. 8 bout was on pay-per-view, but did only 225,000 buys. Though arena ticket sales at the Thomas & Mack Center were excellent, the pay-per-view numbers were disappointing, so the rubber match will be on Showtime.
Arum, who said Showtime is paying a $3.2 million license fee for the fight, said there is a proliferation of pay-per-view shows around that time and that boxing fans deserve a big fight without having to pay extra for it.
"The networks have to start putting up significant money for right fights," Arum said. "They have to cut back on the greed a little and let the people see the fight without having to pay every time or they'll kill it. How much can people spend? Boxing is becoming the most expensive sport around."
Shaw said he is excited because Castillo will be forced to make the weight limit. Corrales could have walked away when Castillo failed to make weight, but he felt the fans paid for a fight and he opted to compete, albeit in a non-title match.
