The Boxing Tribune

Showing posts with label Nonito Donaire. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Dafs' Pound-4-Pound Update (Part 1)

The Ring have told us "to expect major shake-ups" in their pound-4-pound ratings in the coming months, so I thought I'd weigh-in with my personal mythical rankings. I'll rank twenty-five of the world's best fighters for you to agree, or most probably disagree and wave your fists at the computer screen in anger. Three of the best is the fighter's three best victories or draws from 2007 onwards and last ranking is self-explanatory. Without further ado, here's 25-11.

#25 Devon Alexander (USA) (20-0, 13 KO) [Junior Welterwe

ight]

Three of the best: Jesus Rodriguez KO-9; Junior Witter RTD-8; Juan Urango TKO-8;
Last Ranking: Not Rated

Two impressive wins over former titlists have shot Alexander up to the top 25 and I expect Alexander's rise to continue if he keeps winning against high level opposition.

#24 Juan Manuel Lopez (PUR) (28-0, 25 KO) [Featherweight]

Three of the best: Daniel Ponce de Leon TKO-1; Rogers Mtagwa UD-12; Steven Luevano TKO-7;
Last Ranking: Not Rated

Lopez enters after a solid performance against Steven Luevano. His next fight is against Bernabe Concepcion on July 10 in Juanma's first defense of his WBO title.

#23 Chris John (IND) (43-0-2, 20 KO) [Featherweight]

Three of the best: Roinet Caballero RTD-7; Hiryoki Enoki UD-12; Rocky Juarez UD-12;
Last Ranking: #22

John keeps dropping down the rankings and it's his longevity that keeps him in my top 25. He needs to face a top 10 contender to solidify his position, and his next opponent Fernando David Saucedo doesn't qualify as a legit opponent.

#22 Celestino Caballero (PAN) (33-2, 23 KO) [Featherweight]

Three of the best: Lorenzo Parra TKO-12; Steve Molitor TKO-4; Jeffrey Mathebula SD-12;
Last Ranking: #21

The third featherweight in a row, Caballero drops but is still hunting down the big guns in search of a healthy payday. He faces Daud Yordan this coming Saturday in a tough fight for the Panamanian.

#21 David Haye (GBR) (24-1, 22 KO) [Heavyweight]

Three of the best: Jean Marc-Mormeck TKO-7; Nikolay Valuev MD-12; John Ruiz TKO-9;
Last Ranking: #23

Two-weight world champion Haye moves up two places following his impressive stoppage victory over John Ruiz. Hopefully, we can see Haye match-up with a Klitschko before the end of 2010.

#20 Vitali Klitschko (UKR) (38-2, 36 KO) [Heavyweight]

Three of the best: Sam Peter RTD-8; Juan Carlos Gomez TKO-9; Chris Arreola RTD-10;
Last Ranking: #20

Big bro' keeps his position and his next defense is against Albert Sosnowski, which is a fight that can only damage his ranking.

#19 Miguel Cotto (PUR) (34-2, 27 KO) [Junior Middleweight]

Three of the best: Zab Judah TKO-11; Shane Mosley UD-12; Joshua Clottey SD-12;
Last Ranking: #18

Miguel Cotto drops one place because of a new entry, and his scheduled fight against Yuri Foreman will guarantee movement for the two-weight world champion.

#18 Sergio Martinez (ARG) (44-2-2, 24 KO) [Middleweight]

Three of the best: Saul Roman KO-4; Alex Bunema RTD-8; Kermit Cintron D-12;
Last Ranking: #17

Martinez could possibly enter the top 10 with a win against Kelly Pavlik in a fortnight at Atlantic City. His performance against Paul Williams is the reason he's ranked at #18.

#17 Andre Ward (USA) (21-0, 13 KO) [Super Middleweight]

Three of the best: Henry Buchanan UD-12; Edison Miranda UD-12; Mikkel Kessler TD-11;
Last Ranking: #16

Andre Ward is now the favourite to win the Super 6 Boxing Classic 168-pound tournament after he annihilated Mikkel Kessler to win his first world title. Allan Green is his next opponent.

#16 Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (THI) (75-3-1, 39 KO) [Flyweight]

Three of the best: Daisuke Naito D-12; Julio Cesar Miranda UD-12; Koki Kameda MD-12;
Last Ranking: Not Rated

Wonjongkam regained his WBC title with a victory over Koki Kameda where he also won The Ring Championship belt in the process. Plenty of big money fights on the table for Wongjongkam, and maybe he can rise further up the pound-4-pound stakes if he keeps defeating his rivals.

#15 Nonito Donaire (PHI) (23-1, 15 KO) [Junior Bantamweight]

Three of the best: Vic Darchinyan TKO-5; Raul Martinez TKO-4; Rafael Concepcion UD-12;
Last Ranking: #15

Donaire hasn't capitalised on his spectacular kayo victory over Vic Darchinyan, but an interesting rematch maybe on the cards. Can three pounds make a difference?

#14 Kelly Pavlik (USA) (36-1, 32 KO) [Middleweight]

Three of the best: Edison Miranda TKO-7; Jermain Taylor TKO-7; Marco Antonio Rubio RTD-9;
Last Ranking: #14

Pavlik would be edging near the top 5 had he not been humiliated by Bernard Hopkins, but now finds himself re-building a damaged reputation with Martinez next up.

#13 Carl Froch (GBR) (26-0, 20 KO) [Super Middleweight]

Three of the best: Jean Pascal UD-12; Jermain Taylor TKO-12; Andre Dirrell SD-12;
Last Ranking: #13

The highest rank Brit is at #13 and his impressive resume of opponents could feature Mikkel Kessler on April 17.

#12 Ivan Calderon (PUR) (33-0-1, 6 KO) [Junior Flyweight]

Three of the best: Nelson Dieppa UD-12; Hugo Cazares TD-7; Rodel Mayol TD-7;
Last Ranking: #12

Calderon was slated to face Brian Viloria before the 'Hawaiian Punch' lost to Carlos Tamara, and now the undefeated Calderon faces mandatory challenger Johnriel Casimero who's an up and coming dangerous Filipino.

#11 Lucian Bute (ROM) (25-0, 20 KO) [Super Middleweight]

Three of the best: Sakio Bika UD-12; Alejandro Berrio TKO-11; Librado Andrade KO-4;
Last Ranking: #11

The best super middleweight outside of Showtime's tournament will face Edison Miranda this month with one eye on the outcome of Pavlik-Martinez who fight in the co-feature on HBO.

UP - Devon Alexander NR to #25; Juan Manuel Lopez NR to #24; David Haye #23 to #21; Pongsaklek Wonjongkam NR to #16

DOWN - Fernando Montiel #25 to NR; Tomasz Adamek #24 to NR; Chris John #22 to #23; Celestino Caballero #21 to #22; Arthur Abraham #19 to NR; Miguel Cotto #18 to #19; Sergio Martinez #17 to #18; Andre Ward #16 to #17;

The rankings will continue tomorrow with part 2, ranging from 10-1.

Your Ad Here

Monday, March 1, 2010

BTBC Stock Exchange

In boxing, opinions can change in a flash. When you’ve got it all, you’ve got it all to lose. The BTBC introduce their brand-spanking new feature, which includes who’s reputation has risen or received a battering in recent weeks.

Floyd Mayweather and Shane Mosley: It's hard to hate on the most exciting match-ups in recent memory. Although not as good as Mayweather-Pacquiao, you can hardly complain with Mayweather's choice of opponent, which carries much more risk than Joshua Clottey does for Pacquiao. When Boxingscene spewed out bullshit over Floyd's second comeback fight, the thought of seeing Matthew Hatton share the ring with one of the greatest fighters of the modern age was frightening. It turned to damage limitation for Floyd's fans, although it did get better. Every three days or so, Boxingscene would upgrade the quality of their rumour fight. From Saul Alvarez, onto Nate Campbell, even as high as Paulie Malignaggi, it became obvious that Boxingscene were getting desperate. And when Andre Berto pulled out of his fight with Shane Mosley due to the Haiti earthquake, Mosley was available for Mayweather. Freddie Roach dismissed Floyd-Mosley on ESPN with Brian Kenny, but he was wrong. Great moment for the sport and a slight rise for both fighters' stock.

Kendall Holt: I'll be honest, I was on the Kendall Holt bandwagon. So was Paul, and many others, who had followed Rated R's career path that reached its peak with a jaw-dropping 61-second knockout of Ricardo Torres and an extremely impressive performance against Timothy Bradley. But last Saturday, his no-show in the ring was puzzling to say the least. He dominated the opening round against Kaizer Mabuza, before becoming a hittable target for five one-sided rounds and forced into submission by the unproven South African. Big drop in stock for Holt.

Edwin Valero: To be honest, I didn't know what to make of Valero's battering of Antonio DeMarco on February 6. Yes, he was impressive, but when is he going to fight someone who has proven consistency on the world stage. Antonio DeMarco is a fine talent, but he still qualifies as a prospect. He hadn't defeated a top 10 fighter, he hadn't proven himself against someone of real note, so what makes him a worthy title challenger. He made the perfect opponent for Valero though. For the impressive display, but the soft touch in opponents, Valero's stock doesn't change, but is still pretty high.

Robert Stieglitz: Stieglitz is the black sheep of the Universum family. Random you may think, but Stieglitz wanted to open his title defence with a tough battle against Edison Miranda, but unfortunately for the German, Miranda pulled out the week before the fight due to illness. Unlike other Universum fighters, he wants to be evenly matched, he likes to be challenged. His next opponent will be undefeated and highly touted prospect Eduard Guktnecht, who's around the same talent level as Stieglitz and should be a tough match. He may not be fighting the best in his division, but at least he's not under-matched. I'm impressed.

Amir K

han: Now think of the opposite of Stieglitz. Khan has the talent which Stieglitz may lack, but is wrapped in cotton wool by his new promoters Golden Boy and fighting in no-risk fights. Everybody knows that Khan has major question marks over his chin, so you'd understand avoiding big punchers. But if that fighter becomes your mandatory, surely it's a must fight, not pay the organization and avoid. The thing that makes it even more irritating is the fact I would predict that Khan would defeat Maidana nine times out of ten. But he'll probably chose a soft touch in Malignaggi, which is not the worst of opponents, but definitely not the best. For being a chicken, minus rep.

Fernando Montiel: Let's go through this process again shall we. Montiel, talented, popular, got pound-4-pound attributes and so on. He has two options; fighting for the bantamweight crown or defend his poxy belt against a third-tier contender. Which one does he choose? The easy predictable Top Rank decision. Instead of fighting Hozumi Hasegawa, he'll batter Eric Morel, a post-prime bantamweight challenger that poses no threat what so ever to Montiel. Zzzzz...

Mike Jones: The BTBC co-house fighter for 147 pounds didn't turn in a flashy performance for the cameras against Henry Bruseles, but he still defeated his toughest opponent to date pretty handily over ten rounds. The lack of TV time for Jones has been mind-boggling, but I hope his performance hasn't effected his broadcasting future. He lost the opening two rounds, which suggested that Bruseles was far from shot, but he showed impressive composure to get back in control. Mike Jones' stock stays the same.

Yuriorkis Gamboa: The talented Cuban produced a scintillating display as he battered experienced veteran Rogers Mtagwa inside two rounds with extremely ridiculous accurate power punching from the get go. Gamboa looks like the best prospect (can we still call him a prospect?) in the game, and he looks like he'll dominate the sweet science for a long long time. With rumors floating around that he could face unpredictable and awkward super bantamweight titlist Celestino Caballero in June, Gamboa's stock is at an all-time high.

Elio Rojas: Only known to the hardcore fans, Rojas produced a sterling display to shutout Guty Espadas Jr. in a fight that he was expected to win, but he also did it in style. Rojas could be a wildcard at 126 after couple more seasoning fights.

Nonito Do

naire: The Filipino Flash hasn't capitalised on his stunning upset knockout win over Vic Darchinyan. Raise your hand if you were 0.006% impressed with Nonito Donaire's victory over Manuel Vargas. Seriously. Raise your hand, and then comment about what impressed you. Someone out there has to be amazed. Someone out there has to really think, this Donaire can really fight. We don't know if Donaire can fight, I would even be blunt and say that I'd back Darchinyan in the rematch because of his level of opposition.

Juan Manuel Lopez: The Puerto Rican superstar outclassed Steven Luevano in January, but doubts still hang above Lopez. Sure, he's talented and a very exciting fighter to watch, but he's being under-matched by Bob Arum and is still bitching about Caballero while it's pretty obvious he wants nothing to do with him. Lopez's stock stays even.

Roger Mayweather: Has Roger and Floyd Sr. accused Manny Pacquiao of every performance enhancing drug yet? Seriously Roger, shut the fuck up.

Your Ad Here

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Latin Fury 13/Pinoy Power 3 PPV Review

I don't know why, but every review seems to start with the main event. But not this one. I'll start with the most meaningful and competitive fight, then the controversial one, finishing with a brief account of how Donaire and Montiel's public sparring sessions went.

Bernabe Concepcion UD 10 Mario Santiago

In an unofficial eliminator to face WBO titlist Juan Manuel Lopez in the Summer, Bernabe Concepcion (30-2-1, 17 KO) won a too-wide decision over Mario Santiago (21-2-1, 14 KO) in the best fight of the night by far. The scores seemed wider than they should have been, but the judges had given it to the right fighter. Santiago gave it his all, but for me, he only won 5 rounds at most and Concepcion scored a knockdown. Santiago rallied late on but it wasn't enough, as Concepcion won by scores of 98-91, 96-93, 97-92. The BTBC scored it 96-93 Concepcion. It's a big win for Concepcion, who gets a once in a career opportunity against an icon in Juan Manuel Lopez. Lopez is the obvious favourite, but the unpredictable Concepcion is a live underdog.

Eric Morel SD 12 Gerry Penalosa

In a WBO bantamweight elimination fight, Eric Morel (42-2, 21 KO) shoplifted a split decision from veteran contender Gerry Penalosa (54-8, 34 KO). Two unintentional headbutts in round six opened cuts over Penalosa's eyes, but the 38 year-old Filipino upped his game down the stretch and had done more than enough to win on The BTBC card. By all accounts, it was a horrible decision. The judges scores were 115-113 and 116-112 to Morel, while one judge gave it to the right fighter, 115-113 Penalosa. The BTBC had it 116-112 to Penalosa, and it really could've been more.

Nonito Donaire KO 3 Manuel Vargas

Nonito Donaire (23-1, 15 KO)

knocked out blown-up strawweight Manuel Vargas (26-5-1, 11 KO) in three rounds in one of the biggest headline mismatches in PPV history. Donaire towered over Vargas and floored him with a left uppercut in the third. Vargas, a late replacement, is not the calibre of opponent Donaire should be facing at this stage of his career. His original opponent, Gerson Guerrero, doesn't fit the bill either.

Fernando Montiel KO 1 Ciso Morales

In another pointless fight, Fernando Montiel (40-2-2, 30 KO) continued his rise in the pound-4-pound stakes by creaming Ciso Morales (14-1, 8 KO) with a body shot in the opening round. The previously unbeaten Morales didn't give much of a fight, failing to beat the referee's count after Montiel landed a left hand to the body winded the challenger.

Your Ad Here

Friday, February 12, 2010

Nonito Donaire: From Filipino Flash to Filipino Bust

by Paul Magno

When Nonito Donaire first hit the world stage and KOd trash-talking Armenian world champ, Vic Darchinyan, I was riding high on the Donaire bandwagon.

This kid looked like he had it all: power, speed, skill and charisma. He was the type of fighter who could be built into something truly special.

Now, almost 3 years after his shocking title grab, I am firmly off the Donaire bandwagon and it's all Nonito's fault.

With just four bouts in about three years and none against his division's top fighters, Donaire has certainly disappointed all but the most deliriously dedicated fan boys.

The latest disappointment from "The Filipino Flash" began with the selection of his PPV-headlining opponent: Boxrec's 35th ranked super flyweight and dedicated journeyman, Gerson Guerrero. It takes a pick up full of nerve to place Guerrero alongside Donaire on a pay per view main event, especially after Nonito has taken a 3 year working vacation.

Then, to make matters worse, Guerrero failed a pre-fight eye exam and had to pull out. Manuel Vargas was named sacrificial lamb in Guerrero's place. Vargas is the world's ninth ranked minimumweight last seen getting beat by 105 lb. Donnie Nietes.

For those unfamiliar with the weight classes, minimumweight is a full three divisions below Donaire's super flyweight division. So, essentially, Saturday we'll see the equivalent of Shane Mosley fighting super featherweight Jorge Solis.

Oh yeah, did I mention that Donaire is struggling with his weight and is still about eight pounds over the limit?

One has to wonder why Ring Magazine has stubbornly saved its seat on the bandwagon and insists on placing him in the #6 spot on their pound for pound list, especially when they rate him seventh in his own division. (By the way, the more accurate and reasonable rankings of The BTBC place Donaire #11 at 115 lbs., but that's a story for another day.)

Until something changes, this writer's official statement to Nonito Donaire is short and simple: Get back to me, son, when you're ready to take this sport seriously.

Your Ad Here