Wendy's to begin selling boneless chicken wings

LOS ANGELES, June 9 (Reuters) - Wendy's (WEN.N) will begin selling boneless chicken wings this month as the hamburger chain battles to compete with bigger rivals McDonald's Corp (MCD.N) and Burger King Holdings Inc (BKC.N).

The new meal product, which will sell for $3.99 as a single item or $5.69 when included in a combo meal, includes lightly breaded chunks of whole chicken breast that are tossed in an Asian-inspired sweet and spicy sauce and served.

The item is also available with Bold Buffalo or Honey Barbeque sauces.

The chain's Super Value Menu already includes Crispy Chicken Nuggets that sell for 99 cents to $1.39.

Fast-food rival Yum Brands Inc (YUM.N) sells bone-in and boneless chicken wings at its KFC restaurants and its Pizza Hut chain sells WingStreet chicken wings in a variety of flavors.

A variety of mid-tier restaurants also sell traditional and boneless wings. They include Buffalo Wild Wings Inc (BWLD.O), Hooters and Brinker International Inc's (EAT.N) Chili's Grill & Bar.

Arby's owner Triarc bought Wendy's in September in a merger designed to make the chains more competitive with its bigger and better-performing rivals. (Reporting by Lisa Baertlein; Editing by Tim Dobbyn)