A REINVIGORATED Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire Jr. continues to work his way toward another shot at a world championship in the junior featherweight division following his victory in last Saturday’s Pinoy Pride 30: D-Day at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Needing just a little over five minutes to stop Brazil’s William Prado in two rounds to capture the vacant North American Boxing Federation belt, the 32-year-old Donaire (34-3 won-lost, 22 knockouts) set his sights on challenging either Leo Santa Cruz or signing on a rematch with Guillermo Rigondeaux.
The 26-year-old Santa Cruz, holding an unblemished mark of 29-0-1 (won-lost-draw) with 17 wins through KO, holds the World Boxing Council (WBC) junior-featherweight title and will pose as a tough battle for the No. 1 contender Donaire.
The 34-year-old “El Chacal” Rigondeaux (15-0 won-lost, 10 KOs), on the other hand, is no stranger to Donaire as he retained both World Boxing Organization and World Boxing Association titles via unanimous decision in their previous meeting on April 13, 2013, at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
Donaire’s father, Nonito Sr., said their camp is ready to face either Rigondeaux or Santa Cruz, but prefers a rematch with the former to avenge the loss on the scorecards.
“Kung papayag ang promoter ni Rigondeaux, anytime na kami ready. Wala kaming problema doon,” Donaire Sr. said.
The younger Donaire said that all he needs to do is to stay on his toes to keep in check with the other world champions in his division.
“I do believe that I still could compete against world champions. It’s just a matter of being ready. When I’m ready, I can conquer whoever is in front of me. So I’ll be ready,” Donaire, said.
“We’ll take things step by step. We saw on what level I am at in terms of my talent and my ability. With a little bit more work, we’ll be ready. The moment I go back home, I’ll start training again and be ready for July. But there will be many things I’ll have to work on and it will be addressed in the gym,” Donaire added.
Image credits: Kevin dela Cruz