When it rains, it pours.
Still reeling from the recent losses of Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao and Brian “The Hawaian Punch” Viloria, Filipino boxing fans yesterday once again saw the defeat of one of the country’s prominent boxers after Nonito “The Flash” Donaire bowed to Cuba’s Guillermo Rigondeaux via a unanimous decision in their unification title fight yesterday at the Radio City Music Hall in New York.
Judges John Stewart (114-113), John Schreck (115-112) and Julie Lederman (116-111) all scored the fight for Rigondeaux as Donaire lost just eight days after Viloria succumbed to Mexican Juan Francisco Estrada via a split decision in their own world title fight in Macau.
Donaire’s defeat came while Filipino boxing fans are still feeling the pinch of Pacquiao’s devastating loss to Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez last December.
Michael Aldeuer, president/CEO of ALA Promotions, said the string of defeats is just coincidental and that the country can still maintain its status as one of the hotbeds of world champions.
“It’s always a cycle. There will be a time that we have the most number of world champions and there were also times that we see our boxers lose. There are still young fighters out there who can win it,” said Aldeguer.
Two of the at least three remaining Filipino world champions are with the Cebu City-based ALA Gym namely: Donnie Nietes and Merlito Sabillo. The other Filipino world champion is Johnriel Casimero of Omega Boxing Stable, also based in Cebu City.
Better fighter
Aldeguer admits Rigondeaux was the better fighter.
“It was the right decision. It was a tactical fight. Rigondeaux came in really well-prepared. He knew what to do,” said Aldeguer.
Donaire was not in his usual self and couldn’t keep up with his opponent’s speed, according to Aldeguer.
“Surprisingly, Nonito couldn’t react on what Rigo was doing. He could have thrown more punches but he was slow.
Rigondeaux’s speed was also something,” said the youthful boxing promoter.
The Cuban moved a lot around the ring and it spelled the difference, Aldeguer said.
“Rigondeaux fought a smart fight. It was a boring fight but it was a smart fight. It (running around the ring) was the only way to fight Nonito and Regondeaux knew it was the only way he could win the fight,” Aldeguer said.
Rematch
Rex “Wakee” Salud differed with Aldeguer’s opinion, saying he had Donaire winning in his scorecard.
“The fight was very close. Donaire was up by one point in my score after he knocked down Rigondeaux in the 10th round,” Salud said in Cebuano.
Salud said the two fighters should fight again.
He said he was surprised that Ledeman scored the fight at 116-111.
“I really don’t understand why there’s was big margin in the score,” he said. “I was shocked with the unanimous decision because I even expected a draw,” Salud said.
With the win, the 32-year-old Rigondeaux retained his WBA super bantamweight championship and added the WBO super bantamweight belt while improving his record to 12-0 (win-loss).
He failed to knock out his opponent for only the fourth time since turning pro, but overcame being knocked down twice in the opening minute of the 10th round in a performance that had some booing the lack of action.
Rigondeaux’s speed appeared to be too much for the 30-year-old Donaire (31-2), who was trying to defend his WBO super bantamweight belt for the fifth time. Donaire, the Professional Boxing Writers Association (BWAA) fighter of the year for 2012, was handed his first loss in 30 fights since 2001.
‘I got stupid’
“I apologize,” Donaire said. “I wanted to deliver. During the last two rounds, I got stupid. I didn’t do my job. 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 and I should have.”
This loss comes a couple of days after Donaire received his BWAA Boxer of the Year award in a dinner ceremony held in New York. It also comes at the heels of two Filipinos losing world title bouts in Asia. Brian Viloria lost his WBO/WBA flyweight titles to Juan Francisco Estrada of Mexico by split decision in Macau. Malcolm Tunacao was stopped in the 12th round by WBC bantamweight champion Shinsuke Yamanaka in Tokyo.
The Cuban, a two-time gold medalist believed to have fought over 400 amateur bouts, landed 129 of 396 punches. Donaire landed only 82 of 352 punches and by the time the fight ended, he was trying to avoid further swelling on his right eye.
“We fought the Cuban boxing way, hit and don’t get hit,” trainer Pedro Diaz said. “We made Donaire look very bad.”
Donaire appeared to knock down Rigondeaux in the opening seconds of the 10th, but referee Benjy Esteves ruled it a slip. After being dropped with a left hand, Rigondeaux quickly got up.
Going into the 12th round, judges Tom Schreck and Julie Lederman had the fight in favor of Rigondeaux, with Schreck scoring it 105-103 and Lederman 106-102. John Stewart had the fight even at 104-104.
“He was pitching a shutout,” trainer Diaz said. “He won every round. He was throwing more punches and being more aggressive.”
Rigondeaux ended his biggest victory as a pro by opening the 12th with three hard lefts and then began punishing Donaire with a series of punches along the ropes.
ONE PUNCH
“I saw Nonito looking for one punch,” current WBO welterweight champion Timothy Bradley said. “It seemed like he was looking for one punch. He was following him around the ring but the thing about the Cubans is that they’re so smart. That’s why you kept seeing that right hand around the head. That’s Cuban style fighting. That’s what they do.”
In the buildup to the fight, Donaire and Rigondeaux had an eye-to-eye confrontation in the weigh-in. When the fight concluded, Donaire headed to Rigondeaux’s corner and told him he was the best.
Rigondeaux dominated the opening round and appeared to catch Donaire off-guard quickly with a pair of effective left hands and then got his attention with two more right hands, including one near the final bell.
“This is boxing,” Rigondeaux said. “I got him right away. He didn’t hurt me.”/Calvin D. Cordova, Editorial Assistant with an AP report and Correspondents Christine Emily L. Pantaleon and Rene Bonsubre Jr.