Nonito Donaire vs Abner Mares not off the table, Donaire back on April 13

Nonito Donaire and Abner Mares just might fight after all. After weeks of fans and media assuming that Mares being a Golden Boy fighter, and Golden Boy reluctant to "loan" him to Top Rank, would block the best matchup to be made at 122 pounds (and one of the best in the sport, period), Bob Arum says that the Mares team are speaking with them now about the possibility.

Arum has not seemed reluctant to actually make the fight, rather only in co-promoting with Golden Boy. The veteran promoter has said he'll put on the fight if he can pay Golden Boy a fee to promote it alone, with Donaire as the A-side (as he should be, with no disrespect to Mares).

It's still an outside shot, but it's something anyway. The other possibilities for April 13 are Guillermo Rigondeaux and Vic Darchinyan. Rigondeaux is the "other" super bantamweight that many want to see Donaire face, a tricky Cuban with a huge amateur pedigree and the WBA world title just 11 fights into his pro career, while Darchiynan would, quite frankly, be a personal battle. Donaire flattened Darchinyan in 2007, and a rematch was never made despite some negotiations over that time.

Frankly speaking, if I were a betting man, I'd bet on Donaire-Darchinyan II. But the idea of the Mares fighting being available is exciting, and sometimes it's fun to be an optimist.