IBF CHAMP DONAIRE WOULD LOVE TO FIGHT IN THE PHILIPPINES
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 17 Jul 2007
Newly crowned IBF/IBO flyweight champion Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire says he would “love” if his next fight could be held in the Philippines.
In an overseas telephone conversation with Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today, Donaire said he was arriving on Saturday as guest of the giant Philippine broadcast network ABS-CBN along with his father, Nonito Donaire Sr who is also his trainer and a cousin. Donaire indicated he was grateful to ABS-CBN for "recgnizing my victory and helping me out."
Donaire will be special studio guest of ABS-CBN during its “live” coverage of the blockbuster Golden Boy Promotions "Coming to Fight" card on Sunday. The telecast will feature the WBO lightweight title fight between Czar Amonsot and champion Michael Katsidis, the interim featherweight title bout between Oscar Larios and undefeated Jorge Linarez and the main event featuring two of the greatest fighters of all time, Bernard “The Executioner” Hopkins and Winky Wright beginning at 10:00 a.m.
Donaire said his desire to fight before a hometown crowd is to prove his worth to Filipinos, many of whom hardly gave him a chance in his title fight against the abrasive and arrogant puncher Vic Darchinyan whom he outclassed before putting him away with a picture-perfect left hook in round five. Donaire said “to be home to get my grandpa to see me fight ‘live’ would be so awesome.”
Nonito said he was looking forward to the visit and was “so excited just to see my grandpa.” He recalled that when his grandfather, Francisco Gonzales who lives in Talibon, Bohol heard about his spectacular victory over Darchinyan “he just cried. It was very emotional for the whole family.”
Donaire recalled that his grandfather used to watch boxing in Bohol and recalled that they “didn’t even have electricity or anything like that back then. Grandpa had a battery-operated radio and he was listening to boxing all the time. He loves boxing a lot.”
Donaire’s father and trainer Nonito Sr said they will stay in the Philippines until August 3 and that when the champion returns to the US “we’ll start working out.”
The articulate and classy young champion said he wants to relax and take a month off since he had trained for nine months for the Darchinyan fight and the fights before the title clash. “Then” he said, “I’ll get ready again” although he hasn’t heard from promoter Gary Shaw or his manager Cameron Dunkin about his next fight.
Donaire made it clear “its their call. I’ll never say ‘no’ to any opponent. I hope to fight the best out there. I live for that. It’s the greatest feeling that you can ever get as a fighter. Its my promoter’s and manager’s decision but I say ‘no’ to nobody.”
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:
Crawford Not the First Lightweight to Distinguish Himself at Super Middleweight
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso, Tue, 16 Sep 2025SAMBO Pilipinas is Southern NSA of the Year 2025
By Lito delos Reyes, Tue, 16 Sep 2025Kingsley “The Black Lion” Ibeh To headline historic “Legacy Nights” Inaugural Pro Boxing event in El Salvador
Tue, 16 Sep 2025Smarts over power
By Joaquin Henson, Tue, 16 Sep 2025HALL OF FAME FLIES FLAGS AT HALF-STAFF FOR TWO-DIVISION CHAMPION RICKY HATTON
Tue, 16 Sep 2025Kazakhstan tops the medal table at the inaugural World Boxing Championships 2025 thanks to victory in the final bout of the competition
Tue, 16 Sep 2025THRILLA IN MANILA GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY 13: JOE FRAZIER’S HUMBLE BEGINNINGS AS AN AMATEUR FIGHTER
By Maloney L. Samaco, Mon, 15 Sep 2025A New King, A New Challenger: Turki Alalshikh Proposes Crawford-Benavidez While Canelo Alvarez Faces Defeat with Humility
By Dong Secuya, Mon, 15 Sep 2025Highly Questionable Title Eliminator
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso, Mon, 15 Sep 2025Yoseline Perez Earns Silver Medal at Inaugural World Boxing Championships
Mon, 15 Sep 202521-year-old Filipino wins at Germany rapid chess tournament
By Marlon Bernardino, Mon, 15 Sep 2025Nagoya Nightmare: Naoya Inoue Notches One-Sided Decision over Murodjon Akhmadaliev
Mon, 15 Sep 2025Inoue’s Philippine Connection: Which Pinoy Super Bantamweight Could Challenge “The Monster?”
By Carlos Costa, Mon, 15 Sep 2025Yoseline Perez Advances to the Finals at the World Boxing Championships Perez Set to Face Chinese Taipei’s Hsiao-Wen Huang for 54-Kilogram World Title
Mon, 15 Sep 2025Canelo Gets Outboxed, Loses Undisputed Title to Crawford
By Carlos Costa, Sun, 14 Sep 2025