Nonito Donaire’s left hook that landed with crushing force on the jaw of Fernando Montiel last February was a punch that left a lasting impression. Not only on three-division world champion Montiel, who said he had never been hurt that badly, but throughout boxing.
Every function attended over the next couple of months contained talk about the wicked punch that dropped Montiel in the second round of the bantamweight title fight. Most other fighters would have been out cold; the punch was that hard and that clean.
But the iron-chinned Montiel rose, only to get stopped moments later by a follow-up barrage from Donaire.
It’s this type of punching power that has Donaire, also an outstanding boxer overall, knocking on the door of superstardom. He’s explosive, and that’s what fans want to see.
“I’ve been around a long time and that was one of the most devastating punches I have ever seen,” promoter Bob Arum said of Donaire, who tonight will defend his two belts against Omar Narvaez of Argentina at Madison Square Garden (on HBO).
“He caved in Montiel’s face,” Arum said. “It was scary and it demonstrates to me that not only is Nonito a good boxer but he has lethal power in his hands and it’s going to be tough for anyone to beat him.”
Robert Garcia, Donaire’s trainer, believes Donaire has what a lot of top fighters don’t.
“The cannon that Nonito has, not even all of the elite fighters have it,” Garcia said. “You can be Advertisement
an elite fighter and not have that cannon. He sees the punches. He studies the opponents inside the ring and feels what’s coming and he already knows whet he’s going to come back with.
“Montiel was landing a few body shots but Nonito was doing that on purpose to time that moment and it landed, but not every fighter has that talent. You can be called the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world and not have that talent. Few fighters have it, but Nonito is one of them.”
Garcia said Donaire, 28, told him before the fight it was going to end in the second round.
“I did call the second round and I explained to Robert beforehand and everyone on my team. They were so surprised,” Donaire said. “Before I went in the ring I explained to each and every one of them how it was going to end.”
Knockouts are what Donaire (26-1, 18 KOs) thrives on. Just about all his fights these days end that way. Over his first 17 fights, he produced nine knockouts. Over his past 10, he has nine knockouts.
“I always believe my power is enough to change the fight regardless of how many rounds it is,” Donaire said. “I have said it over and over that the most satisfying victory is a knockout victory.”
Now it’s time to market all that is Donaire into a pay-per-view star. It’s doubtful he will realize the heights reached by his fellow Filipino, Manny Pacquiao. But Arum, who did wonders promoting Oscar De La Hoya and has done the same with Pacquiao, certainly will try.
“Everyone that follows boxing knows he is a top pound-for-pound (fighter),” Arum said of Donaire, who is ranked No. 4 by the Yahoo! Sports pound-for-pound poll. “But our goal is to make him a superstar. The goal, as in any fighter, is to make him a pay-per-view attraction.
“How long that will take? It’s sort of silly to make a projection. It will come when it comes. When it comes it will launch him into the elite superstar category where he will make his money based on how many people follow him on pay-per-view.”
Tonight, they will be following him on regular HBO against a former two-time champion who has nothing to lose and everything to gain. Donaire, of San Leandro via the Philippines, has plenty to lose. He wants to move up to super bantamweight and eventually featherweight in an effort to secure more high-profile fights and strengthen the Donaire brand.
A loss to Narvaez would slow those efforts quite a bit.
“He is a hell of a fighter,” Garcia said of Narvaez, a former flyweight and super flyweight champion who will be in his first fight at bantamweight. “He knows how to take a fight into the later rounds and I’m pretty sure that’s what he’s going to try and do.
“He’s a veteran at this. But once he gets in the ring, he will be in against Nonito. Nonito’s power, Nonito’s speed, Nonito’s footwork is going to show a big difference. We can’t take this fight lightly because we want to get to those big fights that Bob Arum could be talking about or that (Donaire’s manager) Cameron Dunkin has in mind.”
Narvaez (35-0-2, 19 KOs) has a record of 20-0-1 in championship fights, and he may be everything Garcia says he is. But he’s 36 – old for a small fighter – he’s never fought at bantamweight and at 5-foot-3 is four inches shorter than Donaire.
No worries for Donaire.
Perez continues to pursue championship dream
Eloy Perez is no different than any boxer serious about his career.
He wants to win a world title, and he wants it badly.
“That is part of the dream of being a fighter, is being champion,” said Perez, who on Friday will square off with Ira Terry (24-6, 14 KOs) of Memphis in the super featherweight main event at Sherwood Inn in Salinas (on the Spanish-language station Telefutura).
But he realizes there is a process, and he took a big step in moving that process along when he signed with Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions a couple of years ago.
“They’re a big, hot promotional company,” said Perez, 24, of Salinas via Rochester, Wash. “They’re huge and I think it was a good opportunity for me and my future.”
The future appears bright for Perez, but he has to be careful there are no missteps.
Losing to an unknown fighter like Terry would be a big one, and Perez said he is fully aware of that.
“Yeah, I mean, anything could happen,” said Perez, ranked as high as No. 3 by one governing body. “He could get a good shot in there and the worst could happen, so you always have to be ready and train hard.
“It’s a lot of risk. You could take five steps back when you’re trying to just take one step forward.”
Perez took a nice step forward in his most recent fight when he knocked out Daniel Jimenez in the second round. It was telling because Perez (22-0-2, 6 KOs) has not had a lot of knockouts. Making short work of Jimenez was an eye opener of sorts.
According to Perez, he would do more of this with the right opponents, those willing to exchange more.
“I just haven’t had the right fights,” Perez said. “I want the fights where the fighter is going to come to fight. I’ll look spectacular in those kinds of fights. I live up to the competition.
“I want the competition to get harder because that’s who I am.”
This will be Perez’s second consecutive fight in Salinas. He has lived there for five years, but he has been adopted by the lettuce capital of the U.S.
“They have supported me,” Perez said, “and let me have this as my home.”
He wants to give Salinas a champion.
“I just can’t wait to get an opportunity at a world title,” he said. “I’ve worked so hard.
“And it’s not easy. It’s a long journey.”
Etc.
A replay of last Saturday’s Bernard Hopkins-Chad Dawson light heavyweight title fight won by Dawson via controversial second-round stoppage will be broadcast tonight on HBO along with the live fight between bantamweight champion Nonito Donaire and Omar Narvaez. Golden Boy Promotions, which promotes Hopkins, has protested the result and asked the California State Athletic Commission to rule the bout a no-contest. The commission has not yet acted, but the World Boxing Council on Thursday said the bout should have been ruled a technical draw and has given Hopkins back his championship belt. … Also tonight is the first of four HBO 24/7 episodes for the Nov. 12 welterweight title fight between Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez at MGM Grand in Las Vegas. … Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s trainer, labeled Pacquiao on target in his training. “He’s on fire right now,” Roach said of Pacquiao, who has a draw and a split-decision victory against Marquez. “We had a great start. … He is really motivated for this fight. I see Manny knocking this guy out.”
