Exciting bantamweight Nonito “Filipino Flash” Donaire has another chance of capturing a regional title in the United States.
On Friday he takes on Kahren “Armenian Essence” Harutyunyan for the vacant North American Boxing Federation super flyweight title in a Showtime-televised card at the Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, California.
Donaire believes he is facing the hardest fight in his young career, as Harutyun-yan was one of Manny Pacquiao’s previous sparring partners at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood.
Currently riding a two-bout winning streak, Harutyunyan won the version of the 115-pound division title stakes by the North American Boxing Organization, a regional group under the World Boxing Organization, with a dominant unanimous decision over Tatsuo Hayashida on April 1, 2005, in Montebello, California.
A native of Yerevan in Armenia, Harutyunyan has a 13-2-3 win-loss-draw record and has no knockout wins to his credit. He works out under Pacquiao’s trainer, Freddie Roach.
Donaire has scarier credentials and is slightly favored coming into the fight. He is 13-1 with 8 knockouts in his four-year campaign as a pro, besides having a fruitful experience as an amateur in the United States.
The hard-punching native of General Santos City, now living with his father-trainer Nonito Sr. and pro boxer-brother Glenn “Filipino Bomber” Donaire in Castro Valley, California since 2003, was a veteran of the 2000 Olympic Trials, where he suffered a controversial loss to Brian Viloria, the 1999 National Golden Gloves champion.
Donaire climbed the pro ranks and made an impressive debut with a first-round stoppage of Mexican Jose Lazaro on February 22, 2001, at Inglewood, California.
In his next appearance, Donaire suffered his only defeat on a highly disputed unanimous decision in five rounds against American Rosendo Sanchez on March 10, 2001, in Vallejo, California.
But the hard-hitting young fighter has won his next 12 bouts, including wins in 2002 in Para?aque City and Taguig City against Noel Alma (1st-round KO) and Mark Sales (8-round unanimous decision).
In between, he captured the vacant WBO Asia Pacific flyweight belt with a second round knockout of Kaichon Sor Vorapin of Thailand at University of Guam in Agana, Guam.
In his last outing, Donaire scored a lopsided eight-round unanimous decision over Colombian Llido Julio, who had a record of 33-6-1 with 29 KOs going into the bout, on November 5, 2005, in Stateline, Nevada.
Donaire and Harutyunyan are both 23 years old, but the 5-foot-6 Filipino has a height and reach advantage.
