Yeah,
he’s won convincingly (and picked up a couple of 122-pound world title
belts in the process) but in bouts versus Omar Narvaez, Wilfredo Vazquez
Jr. and, most recently, Jeffrey Mathebula, the respective audiences in
New York, San Antonio and Carson got restless and you could hear a
scattering of catcalls and boos during various stages of those fights.
The
“Filipino Flash” has yet to replicate the lightning in a bottle that
was his eye-opening, second round stoppage of Fernando Montiel in
February of 2011 and it may have created oversized expectations. Donaire
doesn’t necessarily disagree “I think based on the Montiel and [Vic]
Darchinyan fights or the [Volodymyr] Sydorenko fight, people want that
kind of fight,” he said last Wednesday after his day’s work at the
Undisputed Gym near the Bay Area in San Carlos, California. “But there
is that expectation towards knockouts with me at least. But I’ve
accomplished the things that I’ve needed to accomplish during those
fights. Those guys are world champions; they’re not an easy feat. They
are world champions. So it can’t be that easy sometimes but I’ve
accomplished a lot of things I’m happy about with the victories.”
The
manner in which Donaire halted Montiel, at the time, made him among the
most buzzworthy boxers in the business. It also let everyone know:
bring the fight to him at your own peril. Since then, those placed in
front of him have counterpunched in a cautious and safe manner.
“With
Narvaez, after the fight, he was happy. He was telling everyone that,
‘Nonito Donaire couldn’t knock me out,’ even though he lost the fight
and what he had worked hard for, for so many years which was being
undefeated and being a world champion. He didn’t care because Nonito
Donaire didn’t knock him out,” said Donaire of the reluctant Argentine,
who he faced last year at the small room of Madison Square Garden, his
final bantamweight contest. In February, he took on Vazquez Jr. for the
vacant WBO junior featherweight title and then Mathebula, who held the
IBF strap, in July. Both men seemed content playing it safe for 12
rounds. Donaire says, “They came in there thinking, ‘Oh, I’m the bigger
guy.’ Once they got hit, they started to run and cover up.”
At
the world-class level, if a boxer wants to just survive and stink it
out, it becomes almost impossible to score a stoppage. In his most
recent fights, Donaire has almost had to fight for two men. Yes, it does
take two to tangle (and make a fight).
“It’s
more for me trying to figure out and learn the process of being a
better fighter, how to dissect a fighter who blocks and I have figured
out how to do things that way now after facing guys who don’t want to
engage. And so I’ve learned a lot from it. I think that it’s definitely
an experience; that’s for sure,” said Donaire, who understands that he
has to be a steadier, more consistent fighter in his own right and not
just fight in spots.
In
other sports, winning - as Vince Lombardi once famously uttered - is
everything. It’s the only thing that really counts. In the NFL, whether
you win by a field goal or seven touchdowns, it’s all the same.
But in boxing, just how you win and the manner in which you accomplish it means a lot. Yes, it is a bit of a beauty contest and style points do matter…
Donaire’s
promoter, Bob Arum, doesn’t disagree, “Because in boxing, the event
stands on its own and then you gotta sell the next event. So people
judge you on how you did in the prior fight. With a team in a league, a
30-point win and a three-point win is the same. Maybe if someone’s
betting on the game [a points spread might make a difference] but
otherwise, a win is a win.” His manager, Cameron Dunkin, adds, “There’s a
lot more to it than just getting a ‘W’; you need to be impressive and,
listen, this is an entertainment business and the bottom line is people
want to be entertained.”
Just
think about it; it wasn’t just that Andre Ward beat Chad Dawson last
month, it was the manner in which he dominated and stopped Dawson that
really earned Ward the accolades he’s received. It left an impression.
You wanted to see more. With Donaire’s recent outings, by the late
rounds, you had had enough and wanted to move on. But that’s part of the
deal; when you’re considered one of the best boxers on the planet, paid
as well as he is and given the biggest platforms on which to perform,
there is a certain expectation to deliver something beyond the ordinary.
“Definitely.
To the viewers and to the experts, you gotta look grand because you’re
one of the best in the boxing business and that’s how you gotta
represent yourself,” said Donaire, who has won belts in four divisions.
“But it is what it is. People will always have their opinion; I always
take it at that and at the end of the day, a win is a win. Everyone in
my camp is happy. That’s what I care most about.”
That said, is there pressure to do more than just notch a victory on October 13th?
With this in mind, originally, Top Rank had planned to match Donaire
with the always-crowd-pleasing Jorge Arce. Eventually, it was the highly
respected Japanese southpaw (who never lost his crown in the ring) who
got the assignment. Dunkin says, “I think [Nishioka]’s an excellent
fighter and I think it’s going to make an entertaining fight. He stands
and he bangs and Nonito’s going to stand in front of him and bang and
counter and I think their styles mesh perfectly and Robert Garcia (who
works Donaire’s corner on the night of the fight) told me it’s going to
be a very entertaining fight. I agree with him.”
In
the eyes of many observers, the one thing Nishioka brings is a level of
credibility. He’s on a 16-fight winning streak dating back to 2006 and
he held the WBC title for seven fights before voluntarily dropping the
belt after defeating Rafael Marquez last October. “Donaire wants to
fight the best guys out there, so does Cameron and Nishioka was the best
guy available,” said Arum. “I mean, he hasn’t lost a fight in
God-knows-how-many-years and we saw him with Rafael Marquez [in October
of 2011]. It’s a real test for Nonito. The guy [Nishioka] wants to be
considered among the best fighters in the world. You gotta fight
opponents like that.”
But can Donaire recapture that magic he had when he iced Montiel?
“Well,
obviously, the Montiel fight was sensational,” said Arum, who thought
he had his next bona fide star after that contest but instead was
embroiled in a legal dispute with Donaire that kept him out of the ring
for much of 2011. “That was the pinnacle; he had a fighter like Montiel
and with one punch, he caved his face in. So obviously, that’s a moment
to be treasured if you’re Nonito Donaire and he’d like to replicate it.”
In
two Saturdays, if he doesn’t, what is sure to be a predominantly
Mexican-American crowd at the Home Depot Center will surely let him hear
it. If Rios-Alvarado is the fight Dennis Green thinks it is and we
crown it as such, well, the pressure will be on Donaire to deliver a
memorable performance. But he says he can’t do it all by himself.
“Well, I’m always thankful of my fans because they understand; they
know I try to go out there and tear these [off] guys’ heads. I try to
knock them out. But again, the willingness to engage from my opponents
is what makes it difficult and people can see that. But of course, they
do want to see a different Nonito Donaire coming into this fight because
I was the guy who fell in love with the power and they want to see that
power. But it’s gotten old when people are blocking and it’s time for
me to figure out and find another way to do it.”
DEC 15TH
This much is clear; it looks like Tim Bradley will defend his WBO welterweight belt on December 15th in Miami, Florida at the Fish Tank. The question is, against whom?
There was talk of Robert Guerrero (who is promoted by Golden Boy) and
then Andre Berto (who is promoted by...well, more on that later) facing
the “Desert Storm” but not surprisingly, a deal could not be made
between Top Rank and Golden Boy for a Bradley-Guerrero hook-up. I mean,
because, well...you know why...
Bob
Arum told Maxboxing on Friday afternoon, “HBO was brokering the deal
and knew what they could pay for the fight and the amount that [Golden
Boy CEO] Richard Schaefer was asking for his side was apparently too
high. But I never talked to Schaefer; nobody at Top Rank talked to
Schaefer. This comes from HBO.”
As for a Bradley-Berto clash, well, Schaefer was telling the likes of Lance Pugmire of the L.A. Times that he represented Berto and that he was also in possession of a November 24th date on HBO for a Berto bout with IBF junior middleweight champion
Cornelius Bundrage. “We are holding Nov. 24 for a fight between Andre
Berto and [Cornelius] ‘K-9’ Bundrage and Richard Abril against Sharif
Bogere. That will be a tripleheader and we are currently working on the
third fight as well and that’s with HBO,” he told Lem Satterfield of
RingTV.
This,
of course, was news to one Lou DiBella, who has been the promoter of
record for Berto since the beginning of his career. When notified of
Schaefer’s claims, he first made a phone call (I assume to Al Haymon)
and then called back with this statement, “To my knowledge, I’m Andre
Berto’s promoter. I’ve been assured of such. I certainly have been
performing as his promoter and I am in daily contact with his
management.”
This
was news to Arum who said he had “no idea” that DiBella was no longer
promoting Berto and had talked to him on Friday morning trying to
consummate Bradley-Berto.
OK,
keep this in mind: individuals like DiBella who “promote” fighters who
happen to be Haymon clients aren’t traditional promoters (and oftentimes
don’t have deals on paper) and really work for Haymon.
Remember, Haymon giveth, Haymon taketh. And Schaefer and Haymon have
entered into an alliance that seems unbreakable (for now). So the
question is, does DiBella have a contract with Berto? And if so, is this
tortuous interference on the part of Golden Boy? (Maxboxing sent
Schaefer an email asking him to clarify his statements on Berto and has
received no reply)
Regarding
Bradley versus Guerrero-Berto, as Aretha Franklin once asked, who’s
zoomin’ who? Right now, it looks like HBO could be stuck with
Berto-Bundrage and Bradley against either Ruslan Provodnikov or Lamont
Peterson instead of the fight they really want. No doubt about it; both
Schaefer and Arum will point fingers at each other. So I wonder, is it
time for Ken Hershman clear the air on just what really took place,
similar to what his predecessor at HBO did when Ross Greenburg admitted
negotiations for a [Manny] Pacquiao-[Floyd] Mayweather fight had taken
place in the summer of 2010 between the two sides when some claimed no
talks had occurred?
For now, what we have is Bradley and a stadium in mid-December.
“We
have done big events in Dallas in Yankee Stadium and I think we
specialize in big events in ballparks and football stadiums and if we do
this event in Miami, we hope to replicate it, “said Arum, who said the
ownership of the Marlins pitched the idea of doing an event to Top Rank.
If this comes to fruition, Arum says that Cuban Guillermo Rigondeaux
would be on the co-feature.
BUZZKILL AFTER DARK
On Friday morning, word leaked out that Orlando Salido - slated to face Mikey Garcia on November 10th at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas on HBO - had injured his hand in a car
door, therefore forcing him off that card. So what does that mean for
Garcia, who has patiently been waiting for his title shot?
Carl
Moretti of Top Rank told Maxboxing, “He stays on the card and we’re
trying to find an suitable opponent.” Dunkin, who manages Garcia, added,
“We’re trying to do him for the interim WBO [featherweight] title and
keep him on the show and keep him going.”
And when Salido is good to go, Arum says, “Sometime early next year we’ll reschedule [Salido and Garcia].”
FINAL FLURRIES
This
past weekend’s edition of “Boxing After Dark” was full of JAGs (as Bill
Parcells would call them, for “Just another guy”) and suspects...It
certainly wasn’t as eventful as this year’s BET Hip-Hop Awards: http://cdn.mediatakeout.com/58721/hip-hop-awards-drama-50-cent-gets-into-a-fight-with-diddy-rick-ross-gets-into-a-fight-with-jeezy-gunshots-arrests.html...Arum
mentioned that Yuriorkis Gamboa (yeah, the guy who left Top Rank
earlier and had Floyd and Fiddy pay a lot to get it done) could appear
on the Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez IV undercard on Dec. 8th...Reversing
course, Stephen Espinoza of Showtime told me via email that they have
purchased the Amir Khan-Carlos Molina bout and will place it on Dec. 15th (at a venue yet to be determined)...Seriously, did Hasim Rahman even
train for his bout with Alexander Povetkin?...Can you believe Stephen
“The Miracle Maker” Morris? He might be inconsistent but geez, he makes
things happen for the ‘Canes...Right now, this is Geno Smith’s Heisman
Trophy to lose...Is this the year Matt Ryan becomes an elite NFL signal
caller?...The Jets are kinda bad...“Treme” doesn’t have a lot of frills
but it’s a solid show on HBO?
