Eye injury may delay Zou Shiming's world title shot
Chinese star is unlikely to fight until March after a headbutt in Macau
China's poster boy Zou Shiming is recovering from an injured eye and probably will not fight for a world title until March, according to his manager Sheng Li.
Zou suffered a nasty gash to his left eye following an accidental headbutt from Kwanpichit Onesongchaigym, of Thailand, in their 12-round world flyweight eliminator fight on the undercard of last weekend's Clash in Cotai II, featuring Manny Pacquiao. Zou won by unanimous decision - his sixth straight win as a professional - but there was concern for his eye after he came out worse from the clash that left a gaping wound requiring three stitches.
We will get him another medical check-up in the next couple of days and, hopefully, we will remove the stitches. He's perfectly fine
"I was with him [Zou] last night and he's recovering fast. We will get him another medical check-up in the next couple of days and, hopefully, we will remove the stitches. He's perfectly fine," said Li.
"It still hasn't been decided [when Zou will fight again]. We're still talking to [promoters] Top Rank. But we would rather be more cautious and give him a little more time to recover from his injury, so there's a good possibility that his next fight will be pushed back to March.
"It was a headbutt and his eye was swollen. But there were only bruises and nothing serious with his eye," said Li. "We're hoping to give him two or three weeks off, and maybe he will be back training after the new year."
The 33-year-old Zou complained of temporary blindness at the moment of impact in the eighth round of his fight.
The two-time Olympic champion still managed to floor his Thai opponent three times on his way to keeping his record intact. "My eye really bothered me, but I fought through it," Zou said after the fight. "It was the toughest fight I ever had."
The Beijing and London Games gold medallist was originally due to fight in Macau on February 14, but with his injury, he now hopes to land a world title by challenging IBF flyweight champion Amnat Ruenroeng (14-0-0, 5 KOs), of Thailand, at a later date.
