Donaire admits near slip-up

MANILA, Philippines - Nonito Donaire Jr. came dangerously close to losing to Vic Darchinyan in their recent rematch in Corpus Christi, Texas, but trailing in two of the three judges scorecards, the Filipino Flash made the key adjustment to turn it around and stopped the rugged Armenian at 2:06 of the ninth round of a scheduled tenner.

Donaire, who turned 31 last Saturday, admitted he had difficulty composing himself in the early rounds and spoke of a mental tug-of-war. “I knew what I had to do,” he said. “My dad and I worked on it in the gym. The plan was to box Darchinyan. But when the fight started, I felt my legs wanted to do one thing and my hands another. My legs were moving like I would box but my hands were moving like I would punch. I think there just wasn’t enough time for me to work on my boxing before the fight.”

Donaire said trainer Robert Garcia and his father Nonito Sr., working his corner, realized he had to step it up in the late going. “We expected Darchinyan to fight like he did – no surprises,” said Donaire. “He paid for his mistake the first time. I knew I had to be first (to land) but it wasn’t happening. I wanted to jab more. Instead, it was Darchinyan who was first. I didn’t know whether to box or punch. In the ninth round, I was determined to bring him out. I figured he would go for a knockout if I wasn’t as aggressive. So I jabbed and he moved in. That was the opening I needed. I’m confident of my power and it got the job done. It was risky but that’s what I had to do to win.” The adjustment was the trick that proved to be Darchinyan’s undoing.

Donaire said he’ll wait for his slightly fractured right cheekbone to heal before even thinking of whom to fight next. WBA/WBO superbantamweight champion Guillermo Rigondeaux is an option but only if he moves up to the featherweight division. The Cuban took away Donaire’s WBO crown via a decision in a unification showdown last April. Another option is WBC featherweight titlist Jhonny Gonzalez of Mexico. The hitch is Gonzalez, who knocked out Abner Mares in one round to claim the WBC belt last August, is tied up with Golden Boy and Donaire is linked to Top Rank. Other alternatives are IBF champion Evgeny Gradovich of Russia, WBO king Orlando Salido of Mexico and WBA ruler Nicholas Walters of Jamaica. Salido, 33, is high in Donaire’s target list but the talk is he’ll defend against Ukraine’s Vasyl Lomachenko next.

All Donaire wants is a chance to become a world champion again. He has captured world titles as a flyweight, bantamweight and superbantamweight. Donaire held the interim superflyweight championship but couldn’t be recognized as the regular titleholder because no contender dared to face him. He said he could go all the way up to welterweight before hanging up his gloves.

“There are a lot of great fighters out there at 130 (superfeatherweight) and I do want to move up,” he told Donald McRae of Boxing News. “In five years, I want to be fighting at 135 or 140. I could go up to 147 – why not? A man without ambition stands still. You become stagnant. I’ve been a world champion in three divisions so far and it should be four. I was an interim champion at 115 but no one would fight me at that weight and I never got the belt. That’s why I want more now.”

Reuniting with his father in the gym was a blessing for Donaire, both spiritually and physically. They were estranged for over three years after working together since he was an amateur. “Now, my dad and I are back together,” Donaire told McRae. “Everything is starting over again and I need to get back that hunger I had 10 years ago. And I’m starting to get that fire back with my dad.”

Donaire said it was his wife Rachel who reached out to his father and brokered the reconciliation. She flew Nonito Sr. over from San Leandro, California, to Las Vegas without his knowledge. “There was no hatred and we refused to talk about the past,” related Donaire to McRae. “It was like ‘Hey, let’s work things out, let’s make things better.’ It’s definitely a blessing to have my family back. My wife did an amazing thing for me because this was the one thing missing in my life. I can start all over with my father.”

Nonito Sr. couldn’t be happier as he embraced his son, daughter-in-law and grandson Jarel who was born last July. No doubt, the blessing was the inspiration that propelled Donaire to victory over Darchinyan in reversing the tide of defeat.