DONAIRE'S DAD: "JUNJUN WILL BE BACK"
By Eddie Alinea
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 15 Apr 2013
MANILA (PNA) - Cuban defector Guillermo Rigondeaux outsmarted Filipino Nonito Donaire Jr. in nearly all of their 12-round encounter to remain the World Boxing Association super-bantamweight kingpin and at the same time annex his opponent?s World Boxing Organization plum via a clinical unanimous decision victory Saturday night (Sunday in Manila) at the Radio City Music Hall in new York City.
Both fighters came to fight, but the 32-year-iold two-time Olympic Games winner appeared more prepared as he dominated the four-time world champion and the ?Fighter of the Year? honoree last year from the opening bell, except in the 10th round, to emerge at the winning end from the three judges with John Stewart scoring 114-113, Tom Schreck, 115-112, and Julie Lederman, 116-111.
Fighting what his trainer said the ?Cuban boxing way,? the 2-1 underdog Rigondeaux gave Donaire a sign of what was to come right in the opening round when he caught the Filipino by surprise by scoring a strong pair of lefts and the same number of rights that forced the Filipino wobbly to the ropes. He never looked back after that except in the fourth canto when the soon-to-be father with wife Rachel connected with a powerful right near the end of the round, which turned out to be the deposed WBO champ?s best showing at that point.
Rigondeaux resumed his charge in the next five sessions, but in the 10th, Donaire looked to have sent his challenger to the canvas at starting the round which referee Benny Estevez ruled a slip. As if to prove it was a real knockdown, Donaire slipped through a clean left hook to the face in the ensuing action forcing the ring official to issue a mandatory eight-count.
Donaire?s right eye was almost close after the fight with a big lump under it, even as his handlers tried to contain the blood oozing from his nose.
?Jun turned out a one-dimensional fighter in that fight,? Donaire?s estranged father Nonito ?Dodong? told this writer in a telephone interview after the showdown. ?He waited 12-rounds long for a one knockout punch that never came. He forgot to engage.?
?Malungkot kami siyemnpre ng Mommy nya kahit nagkaroon kami ng diperensya,? Dodong, who is in Manila in a vacation, said. ?Wala namang magulang na nakatitiis sa anak. Ang mga kapatid nya, nalulungkot din.
Iisa naman ang dugong nananalaytay sa ugat naming lahat,? Dodong assured though that his prodigal son will come back fighting to regain his title or move to a heavier division. Kilala ko si Jun, kasama naman ako sa career nya noong una. Babalik siya.?
?I apologize,? Donaire exclaimed during the traditional post-fight press conference. ?I wanted to deliver. I go stupid during the last two rounds. I didn?t do my job.?
?Donaire admitted his fault, saying, ?I didn?t use my jab and go to my left. I have no excuse, he beat me tonight. I gave it all I got. I never studied the fight which I should have.?
?This is boxing,? Rigondeaux, for his part, said. ?I got him right away. He didn?t hurt me. ?As I told you before, I would do my job and I did. I made him look bad, you can?t win by landing one shot.?
Rigondeaux, otherwise known as ?El Chacal,? improved to 12-0 although for only the fourth time in his young pro-career, he failed to knockdown an opponent. That was Donaire?s second loss in his 33 pro-fights spiked by 20 KOs. He has not lost since March 2001.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.
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