By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse
Even as WBA interim super flyweight (115 pounds) champion Nonito Donaire focuses on his next opponent, Hernan "Tyson" Marquez, the 27-year-old Philippines native has long-range goals that include being a four-to-five division champion.
That's not only out of desire, but out of necessity. The nearly 5-foot-7 Donaire is having trouble remaining at 115 pounds.
From June of 2004 through November of 2005, Donaire (23-1, 15 knockouts) fought six times as a bantamweight (118 pounds), going 6-0 with three knockouts.
In his last bout on Feb. 13, Donaire looked much larger than his opponent when he flattened 29-year-old Manuel Vargas (26-5-1, 11 KOs) in the third round.
"I'm definitely growing. I mean, I think that I should be fighting at 122 pounds [super bantamweight,]" said Donaire. "It's getting ridiculous for me to be dropping down to 115 pounds."
A San Leandro, Calif., resident, Donaire constantly hears comparisons to his Filipino countryman, Manny Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 KOs), a seven-division titlist and current holder of the WBO welterweight (147 pounds) title.
A three-time Fighter of the Year and one-time Fighter of the Decade, Pacquiao is considered by many to be the sport's premier performer, pound-for-pound.
"It's an honor -- a great honor -- to be compared to Manny Pacquiao. I mean, the guy has done what no one has ever done before. So for someone to throw a name at you like that, that's a big compliment. It's like if you're starting out in basketball, and someone is calling you the next Michael Jordan. I'm like, 'thank you,' " said Donaire.
"It's a compliment, but I'm just going to keep doing what I need to do and follow in his footsteps. I'm just going to follow the blueprints that he has put forth because he's given me the inspiration to go as far as I can with my abilities," said Donaire. "I want to enjoy each moment, and not be complacent. I want to keep moving on and see how far I can go with it."
Nicknamed "The Filipino Flash," Donaire has a 22-fight winning streak, with knockouts against seven of his past nine opponents.
If Donaire defeats Hernandez on Saturday night at Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot in San Juan, Puerto Rico, he would like a shot at 31-year-old, WBO bantamweight (118 pounds) champion Fernando Montiel (41-2-2, 31 KOs).
But first Montiel would have to get beyond a July 17 clash with 34-year-old Eric Morel (42-2, 21 KOs), whom he will meet in Tuxtla Gutierrez, Mexico.
Montiel is coming off of April's fourth-round knockout over Hozumi Hasegawa, this after having scored February's first-round knockout over Ciso Morales.
"I made it clear that this fight against Marquez is the very last time that I will reach 115, and then, I'm going up to 118 pounds. And if I get a title shot at 118, I might stay there for maybe one fight. And then, I want to move up to 122. If I was to beat Montiel, and then, there was a good offer on the table at 118, then, you know what? I might stay at 118 for maybe for one more fight," said Donaire.
"But after that, you know, I'm really going to be willing to move up," said Donaire. "Because there are a lot of guys up at the higher weights who have a good name, and, I'm willing to mix it up with them. I'll be more comfortable at the higher levels than staying at 118 pounds if there isn't anything else."
In Marquez, of Empalme, Sonora, Mex., Donaire is meeting a 21-year-old southpaw with an excellent record of 27-1, with 20 knockouts even as he comes off of his first loss in March by 10-round unanimous decision against 23-year-old Richie Mepranum (22-2-1, five KOs) of Maasim, Saragani, Philippines.
"For me, in every fight, the most satifying victory is a knockout victory, and I always go for the knockout victory if I see it. The biggest thing that I want to show is that everybody knows that this guy has never been down. He's made a big deal out of the fact that he had a bad day in his last fight against Mepranum," said Donaire.
"Marquez said that he's never been down, and that he's been in with some really tough guys, and that he's a tough fighter. So it's a big challenge in my head that hey, 'I'm going to take him out,'" said Donaire. "It would be a satisfying victory that I want, and if I can do it, I will. But I'm going to be smart about it. If the opportunity is there, I will take the opportunity."
For nearly the past three months, Donaire has encorporated nearly three months of supplemental and special training under former BALCO founder, Victor Conte, who now runs the Scientific Nutrition for Advanced Conditioning (SNAC) and provides legal sports nutritional products and nutritional supplements.
Part of Donaire training involves altitude workouts conducted on a specialized "machine called a hypoxicator," said Conte, whose SNAC facility "is a couple of blocks down from the Undisputed Boxing Gym there in San Carlos where Nonito holds his boxing workouts."
The altitude simulation "will help Nonito in the later rounds," said Conte, "when the other guy is fatigued."
"This is experimental for me. I'm experimenting with the hypoxicator, and I'm experimenting with the supplements. I'm experimenting with myself to see what makes me feel good, and I'm definitely used to it. It's like nothing to me. I'm still sparring better and I'm still going 12 rounds with it. There's more red blood cells in my system and I'm going like the energizer bunny," said Donaire.
"On the night of the fight, I expect to be 100 percent. I'm cutting down a lot of weight, and it is hard to drop the weight because I have a lot more muscle," said Donaire. "But once I get going, though, I just get going. Whether it goes two rounds or 12 rounds, I'm ready for it. I feel that whatever I've trained for, the energy is going to be there."
Donaire began the year wanting to get in four bout in 12 months. One fight that fell through was a scheduled, Aug. 21 rematch with Armenian-born WBC and WBA super flyweight champion Vic Darchinyan, of Austrailia.
A southpaw who is nicknamed, "The Raging Bull," Darchinyan is 7-1-1, with five knockouts since suffering a July 2007 fifth-round knockout loss to Donaire.
On May 5, the bout was officially called off, with both sides -- Donaire's Top Rank Promotions and Darchinyan's promoter Gary Shaw -- claiming that the other pulled out.
"I stayed at 115 for the longest time, hoping we could make the fight happen and the fight was already scheduled for August 21st. When I came in to sign the contract, on that very day that Top Rank flew us in, Darchinyan decided not to fight me so I don't know. I gave him the opportunity to fight me. A chance to have his rematch with me and to once and for all settle it, but he didn't want to do it, so I had to move on," Donaire told Boxingscene.com
"The August 21 date was already set," said Donaire. "It is frustrating. I am just disappointed that we had made the fight happen and Showtime had fully agreed to it and had already helped put the promotion together. I am ready to move up in weight and start gaining more titles if I can. I am not going to wait for you guys any longer. I am going to try to see what I can get at the 118 and 122 division."
Source: boxing.fanhouse.com
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