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Philippines, 21 Feb 2026 |
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NONITO DONAIRE : "I WANT TO BE THE BEST. I WANT TO FIGHT THE BEST" By Rich Mazon PhilBoxing.com Wed, 21 Sep 2011  New York - Nonito Donaire's last twenty four hours has been a busy one, to say the least. It has been a whirlwind of a day for the boxer known as the 'Filipino Flash' and his wife, Rachel who is in town to promote his October 22 fight at the WAMU theatre of the Madison Square Garden. Donaire graced the New York leg of the Miguel Cotto - Antonio Margarito press tour at the Edison Ballroom yesterday and talk of his upcoming fight and defense of his bantamweight belts. It will be his first fight in the East Coast and this one is special to him as he will be headlining the card at no less than the Mecca of Boxing, the Madison Square Garden. "I'm happy because it's my first time here and I will finally get the chance to meet and see the people of New York and Jersey. I know there are a lot of Filipinos around this area and it's a blessing to be here and showcased my talent in boxing," he enthusiastically said. "It's great to finally get this opportunity to show my talents to the people here, the Filipino community, the Latino community, the boxing community out here. I am given this opportunity and I got to present myself," he added. Donaire will be facing unbeaten Argentinean champ Omar Narvaez in his debut fight at the Big Apple. Omar Narvaez is undefeated in 35 fights and has drawn twice in his career. "My opponent is good and is a legend in Argentina so I need to be at my best and train hard for this fight," Donaire told the scribes gathered around him in this theater at Times Square. "He is a great fighter. He is a fighter that knows how to win out there and that is why he is still undefeated. With his expertise and experience, there could be surprises that I may overlook. It's definitely something that I had to take seriously," he added. Donaire meantime has a lone loss in his 27 fight career. He is fresh from a spectacular second round knockout victory of then bantamweight titlist Fernando Montiel in February at Las Vegas. A performance he calls his "most accomplished knockout." His career went to a stand still after that because of contract issues with his promoter Top Rank but is now happy and relieved that it was all ironed out. "We worked everything out, it was just a miscommunication. Everything is great. I am just blessed to be fighting now. I am blessed that I am getting this opportunity to fight again. I am happy to be with Top Rank." Donaire verbalizes that this is his last fight in this division and is looking to move up in weight after this fight. He verbalizes he is not willing to wait for boxers like Abner Mares who just won a bantamweight belt last month as part of Showtime's bantamweight tournament to challenge him. Mares has a mandated rematch with Joseph Agbeko in December and that might be too long for Donaire to wait for him. "Now, I have learned not to wait. If they want to make that fight happen, they want to make that happen. I am always ready for a fight. I am not here to just look pretty or sit around and fight the easy fights. I want to fight the best out there. If it's in 122 or 126, so be it," he declared. He is looking to fight the winner of the October 1 match between Rafael Marquez and Toshiaki Noshioka as his next fight which will be in the super bantamweight level after his fight with Narvaez. "That is what I'm aiming for. I am looking to fight the winner, either one of them as they are both amazing fighters," he said. Donaire was also asked about a future fight with featherweight king Yuriorkis Gamboa whose name was floated after Gamboa won his fight against Daniel Ponce de Leon last September 10. Gamboa expressed interest of fighting Donaire if Donaire wants to. Gamboa himself is looking to move up another weight class but states he'll stay at 126 if Donaire wants to challenge him. "I don't want to look ahead but with me, I want to fight the best out there. I think that Gamboa is on top. He said he is moving up but is willing to go down to face me. The thing that I want to do is present boxing the way it is supposed to be. It'll be good for the sport if we can get the best fighters out for the best fights, that will be an amazing thing. I'm all about that. I want to be the best. I want to fight the best. And if Gamboa stands in that way, then that will be an amazing fight," he declared. On October 22, 2011 Donaire will have the opportunity to show how good he is and how promising he can be in front of the Tristate area audience. He will also be seen nationally and worldwide as cable giant HBO will feature it in it's Boxing After Dark Series. "I will definitely work hard for the fight for the fans who will watch me in the Garden. I want to keep making that statement that Nonito is to be feared. I will definitely do my best out there and show my power and speed and entertain." Click here to view a list of other articles written by Rich Mazon .  |
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