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Philippines, 20 Apr 2024 |
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THE CONCEPCION FIGHT: WAS IT WORTH THE EFFORT FOR DONAIRE? PhilBoxing.com Sun, 16 Aug 2009  Las Vegas, NV:- As most people now know, the “Filipino Flash”, Nonito Donaire Jr won convincingly over the mis-matched and bloated slugger from Panama, Rafael “El Torito” Concepcion and won another belt for his collection, the WBA Interim Super Flyweight title. It would have been a huge disaster if he did not win as everyone expected him to do just that! Anything less would have been unacceptable. Was it worth the effort? Well, it depends on who you ask. Some say yes, others like yours truly are not too sure. And, here is why. Had it not been for the money and the belt, albeit interim, which of course are important, I feel it did nothing to advance the image and prestige of Donaire, one of the top-10 P4P boxers nowadays. In fact, it exposed some major flaws in his defense that need to be corrected. And, if fight did not end the way it did, it would have been a “set back” for Donaire. Donaire beat Concepcion, a slugger whose credentials were suspect at best. In fact WBA itself, does not even rank him on the top 5. In one of his “best” performances, Concepcion’s victory over the then undefeated A.J. Banal was unexpected. In fact, he was losing the fight until Banal quit because of exhaustion. We have a theory on why Banal ended that way but that is for another day. Suffice it to say, Concepcion’s victory over a “drained” Banal was a lucky win at best. Then Concepcion lost to the Jorge Arce, a boxer who is no longer on top of his game. Read: - Arce is old and on his way out of the game. Concepcion’s record of 13-3-1, 8KO is not exactly something to brag about either. And in spite of his 13 victories, the folks he beat are less than noteworthy. I guess what I am trying to say here is even with his big heart and a huge desire to mix it up with his opponents at best, Concepcion is not on the same level as Donaire and there is no way he could beat “The Flash”. The fight therefore was an unnecessary risk. And it showed. In spite of repeated bomb from Donaire, the heavier Concepcion did not fold. In fact he landed some major bombs himself that caught the attention of Doniare and also placed marks on his right cheekbone. Thus, I say Donaire’s efforts were not worth it and did nothing to advance his cause towards his quest for greatness as a fighter much less for a higher ranking in the P4P list. But that is not to say that I did not enjoy the fight and happy that it ended the way it did. But it would have been sweet if he knocked out the weight cheater. 
Top and above photos: Donaired lands on Concepcion. 
Referee Vic Draculich raises Donaire's hand after the unanimous decision victory verdict for the Filipino Flash. Photos by Dr Ed de la Vega. Instead of the Concepcion fight, it would have been much better if the fight was against one of the better known fighters like Fernando Montiel, Carita Lopez and even Nobuo Nashiro. At least a victory over such big names would have given Donaire more points towards his quest for greatness. Are you listening, Uncle Bob? How about keeping “The Flash” busy and get him a big named fellow to fight before the year ends. It would be a great year end gift to Donaire’s Filipino fans. And, of course to worldwide boxing as well. Click here for a complete listing of columns by this author. Click here for a complete listing of this author's articles from different news sources. |
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