Casual talk from HOLLYWOOD, California – Perhaps he is the most talented fighter in the little-big men’s division. Though he scores a stunning second round knockout over long-time champion
Fernando Montiel last February 19, ranking him above Juan Manuel Lopez would be too premature.
One thing, though, Lopez (30-0-0, 27 KO), now ranked No. 1 in the featherweight division, ACHIEVES THE HIGHEST KNOCKOUT PERCENTAGE among the top ten pound-for-pound boxers in the world today. And it’s only fair, basically, to rank him higher than Nonito Donaire, Jr., his close competitor in the lower weight class. Just six years in professional boxing, he has already fought 30 times and remains undefeated, bearing 90% knockouts, versus Nonito Donaire, Jr’s record 26 wins and 1 loss, boasting only 66.67% knockouts after 10 years since he launched his professional boxing career in 2001.
Now, how could Ring Magazine rank Donaire, Jr. higher than Lopez?
Ring Magazine’s ranking putting Donaire, Jr. on No. 3 spot of the Top Ten’s list for pound-for-pound best boxers in the world today might just be “suspect for undue influence” considering the attempted establishment of promotional hold of Donaire’s camp recently with Golden Boy Promotions, whose founder, Oscar de la Hoya, is also a proud owner of the venerable Ring Magazine. At this time, he is still under Top Rank Promotions.
Report has it that according to Arum, “Donaire has indeed sought the legal services of Vegas lawyer John Bailey for him to leave Top Rank”.
But, Arum explained that “the contract, signed June 26, 2008 will expire this year on June 28”. He also stressed that there is a clause in the contract mentioning the “promoter’s sole discretion 12-month extension,” that which Arum decided to keep its grip on Donaire for another year.
Arum said “the exercise of the 12-month extension took place on February 21, or 2 days after Donaire seized the World Boxing Organization and World Boxing Council bantamweight crowns from Montiel in Las Vegas, Nevada”.
Let’s us talk briefly about his victory over Montiel. Montiel was seen as the heavy underdog even before their fight all because of Donaire, Jr’s skills, height and reach advantage. Yes, Montiel was two
pounds bigger than him on fight night but it was only because of over-hydration and nothing significant, whatsoever; Meaning, he has to fight a much more competitive fighter than just from the bantam weight division.
On the other hand, Donaire, Jr. has fought smaller, less competitive fighters not even belonging to top twenty, except Montiel and Marouti Mthalane, since his fifth round knockout victory over once-feared Vic Darchinyan in 2007. He had been hopping back and forth from flyweight division to super flyweight with a few interjections into the bantamweight division for almost a decade. And was even taunted as a “cherry-picker” and fearing to move up to fight top fighters. In other words, he has been a “long over-due fighter” in the lower division. Unless he moves up and dare to face competitive fighters than just taking easily beatable fighters in his current division such as Anselmo Moreno who only has 31.25 % knockouts out of 30 wins of his 32 professional fights, his current pound-for-pound ranking might not be sustained. Fearlessness to face bigger and fairly competitive opponents is the trait he lacks.
Meanwhile, a Donaire-Lopez match can be interesting, if only they would agree to meet at the feather weight division in a year, not two. Really, not bad for Donaire, Jr. to raise red flag in a year at that weight class. A unification bout in the bantamweight is negligible.
Yes, he must get out of his comfort zone to make it in the top five pound-for-pound fighters’ list in the world today.
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