Donaire may yet be the next Pacquiao

By Al S. Mendoza

STILL looking for the next Manny Pacquiao?

Don’t look now but I just found him.  He’s none other than Nonito Donaire Jr.

Donaire is as good as Pacquiao.  He is strong, fast and a thinking fighter.

Donaire proved that again on Sunday when he defeated Wilfredo Vazquez Jr.

The victory won for Donaire the WBO world super bantamweight crown (122 lb) in only his first fight in that weight division.

It gave him his fourth world title following title-clinching victories in the flyweight, super flyweight and bantamweight classes.

His record is superb:  With his latest triumph, he is now 22-1, with 18 knockouts.

His 11-year, winning streak remained intact even as he stopped four of his last six foes over a two-year period.

“Donaire is now ready for the big time,” said Bob Arum, the same American who promotes Pacquiao.  “Mega fights for him are now just around the corner.”

Donaire’s victory over Vazquez was thoroughly convincing, although the result did not truly reflect it.

And the culprit was Ruben Garcia, one of the three judges.

Grotesquely, Garcia gave the fight to Vazquez, 115-112.

Where he got those scores would remain a mystery as perplexing as the unsolved 1983 assassination of Ninoy Aquino at the Manila airport tarmac.

Levi Martinez and Don Trella saw the fight in favor of Donaire by identical scores of 117-110.

That was also my score as I gave Vazquez Rounds 5, 6 and 7 – the stages when Donaire rested his left hand after it got injured “between the second and fourth rounds.”

It was a split decision victory for Donaire, yes, but to the fans around the world who watched the fight, they disagreed.

Me too, of course.

No way Vazquez could have snatched a win as he was totally out-pointed, out-hit and out-classed.

In the ninth round, Donaire even sent Vazquez crashing to the canvas with two stinging lefts coming successively.

Those shots must have thoroughly inflicted unbearable pain for Donaire.

After the fight, Donaire showed on TV the damage his left hand had absorbed:  It had blisters; blood was dripping, and it appeared badly swollen.

Surgery to repair torn tissues and a fractured bone appeared to be the best option for remedy.

“I was in agony and I merely survived on sheer courage and the will to win,” said Donaire.

At 29, Donaire has a lot of boxing years left.

A well-disciplined boxer, Donaire has repeatedly said he also dreams of copying Pacquiao’s eight world titles in eight different weight classes.

I say, why not?

Like Pacquiao, Donaire has also all the tools to make it to the top:  Brave, smart, powerful and with a Spartan discipline.

With some luck, he could yet hit eight world crowns – if not even more.

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