HE DOESN?T have the bravado that Rey Bautista wields, nor the swagger of a Z Gorres. He also lacks the flair of an AJ ?Bazooka? Banal, but make no mistake about it- right now, Donnie Nietes is The Man at the ALA Gym.
Not only is he ALA?s first world champion, he has proven that winning the WBO minimumweight belt was no fluke and that he probably deserves more of the limelight and the public?s adulation than his more celebrated stable mates.
Donnie?s victory reminded me of Luisito Espinosa?s demolition of Alejandro ?Cobrita? Gonzales in Guadalajara, Mexico for the WBC featherweight belt in which Luisito and his team had to be quickly ushered out of the arena for their own safety.
Only a fighter with a moxie such as Donnie?s can pull off wins like that, and I am quite eager for our hero?s triumphant return so he can regale us with tales of how an ?Ahas? silenced that boisterous mob of Mexican fans at Auditorio Guelaguetza, Oaxaca, Mexico.
JUAN BEATS JUAN. Lamentably, there was no TV coverage for the Juan Manual Marquez-Juan Diaz bout, but from all accounts and the snippets I saw on the internet, Marquez was at his magnificent best when he became the first man to stop Juan ?Baby Bull? Diaz.
The fight was still up for grabs in the ninth round when Marquez unleashed a blistering combo that included some hurtful body shots. Down went Diaz.
The tough young gun that he is, Diaz got up on wobbly legs and met Marquez in the center of the ring. Another searing flurry punctuated by an uppercut proved to the final blows of the bout.
So where does that leave the lightweight division, Last Rounder Ralph Vencer Manigos inquired of this writer.
Well, Ralph, the timely arrival of Marquez with much aplomb, is just what the doctor ordered for this division. You see, prior to this fight, there was big, gaping hole that needed to be filled up and this was brought about by two events.
First was Nate Campbell?s failure to make weight and defend his IBF, WBA and WBO trinkets.
This was quite ironic as just last year, after his original opponent Joan Guzman bombed at the scales, Nate yapped continuously about how unprofessional Guzman was. As the saying goes, what goes around?
Second was Manny Pacquiao?s decision to campaign as a junior welterweight after making a brief (one-fight) stopover at 135 lbs.
CAST. The problem however for Marquez is that he has already defeated the best talents that this division has to offer (Diaz and Joel Casamayor) , with the sole exception of Michael Katsidis.
But ?The Great? Katsidis also lost to Juan Diaz which might affect the marquee value of this potentially combustible matchup.
Waiting down the aisle are Julio Diaz, David Diaz and Paquito Diaz (just kidding), fighters who tough credible competitors, but definitely not pound-for-pound material.
Anthony Peterson who is ranked no. 10 by the Ring magazine is young and undefeated, but by the time he makes his move up the rankings, the 35 year old Marquez might already have moved up in weight.
PART III. I admit that my prediction of a Marquez win was partially clouded by my preference of a third fight with Manny. But hey, who doesn?t want to watch these warriors go at it again?
Though I believe that Manny did enough to win that second fight, the result could arguably have gone either way. Whether you are a Marquez fan or a Pacquiao die-hard, one thing is certain.
After 24 rounds and 4 knockdowns, there is still doubt if Manny is the better fighter. There?s no other way to test that than to have a third and final bout.
If that happens, then its probably bad news for the lightweight division as Manny has already indicated his preference to continue fighting at 140 lbs after the Hatton bout.
LAST ROUNDS. It?s on my sweet-shooting frat brod Jonas Panerio of CDN and Napoleon Pe Jr. of ACGI- Metaphil who recently celebrated their birthdays. Cheers guys!
