A few years ago, IBF flyweight champion Nonito Donaire Jr. was drifting through life and didn?t know where he was headed.
?I lost the desire to fight,? he recalled yesterday. ?I was living with my mother (Imelda) and our family was getting pulled apart. Honestly, I didn?t know what to do with my life.?
It was in 2003, two years after he turned pro, when Donaire experienced the pangs of anxiety and uncertainty. To keep himself occupied, he enrolled in an adult school and even worked in a pet shop in San Pablo, near the family?s home in San Leandro, Northern California.
But the lure of the ring eventually brought Donaire back to his senses. And Olympic gold medalist Andre Ward inspired him to lace up the gloves again.
?Andre is from San Francisco and often watched me train when we were growing up,? related Donaire. ?His late father Frank gave my brother Glenn his nickname ?The Filipino Bomber.? His godfather and trainer Virgil Hunter was a close family friend.
I turned pro three years before Andre won the Olympic gold medal in Athens so I was ahead of him in terms of maturity. When I laid off, I saw how much Andre had improved. He was training for the Olympics and talked to me about getting back in the ring. Then he won the gold medal and I was so excited for him.?
Ward is a devout Christian and is known as SOG for Son of God. Aside from returning to boxing, he influenced Donaire to turn to the Lord, seek refuge in the Church and redirect his life to Christian values.
?Andre reintroduced me to God and gave me back my faith,? said Donaire.
In 2004, Donaire was back on track as a fighter. After he scored a decision over rugged Mexican journeyman Gilberto Bolanos in Montebello, Donaire was approached by a scout for Las Vegas boxing manager Cameron Dunkin.
?Bolanos had a solid reputation and was coming off a knockout win over Kahren Harutyunan,? continued Donaire. ?He?d fought Jhonny Gonzalez and Jose Aguiniga. But I floored him thrice and won convincingly. Bolanos was the same guy whom Boom Boom (Bautista) later fought in Cebu.?
The big break in Donaire?s career came when Dunkin entered the picture.
?Mr. Dunkin?s a low-key guy,? said Donaire. ?He has a lot of scouts looking for prospects. His stable of fighters includes Kelly Pavlik, Steven Luevano and Victor Ortiz.?
Pavlik, 25, is the WBC and WBO middleweight champion with a 32-0 record, including 29 KOs. Luevano, 26, is the WBO featherweight titlist with a 34-1 record, including 15 KOs. He stakes his crown against Thailand?s Terdsak Jandaeng in the Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez undercard in Las Vegas on March 15. Ortiz, 20, is a rising lightwelterweight star with a 20-1 record, including 15 KOs.
The morning after Donaire wrested the IBF crown from Vic Darchinyan with a single left hook to the jaw in the fifth round in Connecticut last July, Ward phoned to congratulate his buddy.
?Andre told me right after he watched the fight on TV, he went to the gym and practiced throwing the left hook,? said Donaire. ?You wouldn?t believe it but a week after I beat Darchinyan, Andre fought Francisco Diaz in Carson City and scored a third round knockout with a left hook. Andre was interviewed after the fight and told media I inspired him to use the left hook to finish off Diaz.?
Ward, 23, now has a 14-0 record, with nine KOs. The 6-foot supermiddleweight switch-hitter started boxing in 1994 and won over 90 bouts as an amateur. In Athens, Ward defeated Magomed Aripgadjiev of Belarus to bag the Olympic gold medal in the lightheavyweight finals. It was the US? first Olympic gold medal in boxing in eight years.
Donaire, 25, said he?s looking forward to meeting American promoter Gary Shaw who?s arriving in Manila on Jan. 21. Shaw is in the thick of negotiations for Donaire?s next fight, possibly a title defense against Hussein Hussein in Dubai on March 26. Shaw will be in Manila for three nights then flies to Cebu to witness the IBF superflyweight title eliminator between Z Gorres and Darchinyan on Feb. 2.
Donaire said Dunkin must approve Shaw?s terms before he agrees to fight Hussein or anyone else.
Donaire is now doing roadwork and boxing drills to stay in shape. He frequents the Gold?s Gym and Ringside in Alabang and the Elorde gym in Southmall. Donaire also plays squash to practice his footwork, reflexes and quickness. Once his next fight is confirmed, he plans to train at the ALA gym in Cebu.
