Nonito Donaire Takes Out Hernan Marquez, Bids Junior Bantamweight Goodbye
Nonito Donaire went into his junior bantamweight bout with Hernan Marquez experimenting with a southpaw style. He came out of it reverted back to a normal stance, but came out nonetheless, defeating his opponent with a TKO in the eighth round.
Undoubtedly, Donaire learned Saturday night he has a long road ahead of him in cultivating the unorthodox style, one which many fighters express difficulties against. At the same time, Donaire is hopeful for the future.
Donaire abandoned a southpaw stance in the fifth round. For the following three rounds he dominated his opponent in the Juan Manuel Lopez – Bernabe Concepcion undercard Saturday in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
It was the final time Donaire, The Ring Magazine’s No. 4 ranked pound-for-pound fighter, will compete at junior bantamweight. He has plans of moving up to 118 Lbs, where he hopes to square off against No. 1 rated bantamweight Fernando Montiel.
Donaire spoke of his resilience with the southpaw stance, saying that he wants “more rounds.” He added: “I knew I could figure him out right away from the right-handed stance. But I was confident (in fighting lefty) and everybody on my team believed in me. I may have taken a little bit of a beating for it, but I feel that I needed that. I will continue to work on my left-handed stance. I feel so much more powerful. Soon you will see Sweet Pea (Pernell Whitaker) or Marvelous Marvin Hagler from me. That’s what I want to do.”
Donaire previously acknowledged that he remained at 115 solely because he hoped to prompt Vic Darchinyan into a rematch of their 2007 fight, in which the latter suffered a knock out. However, both sides couldn’t settle on business terms and are apparently moving on from negotiations.
Donaire, relatively tall for his class at 5"6', said he also had difficulty making the junior bantamweight limit due to his body growing as he ages, something you probably wouldn’t know just by watching him.
Marquez himself (27-2, 20 KOs) is a strong boxer with a good chin. He is also a southpaw himself. The combination of two southpaws generally makes for very interesting and unorthodox fights, most fighters being used to fighting a standard right-handed opponent.
Upon returning to his natural stance, Donaire was able to demonstrate the boxing prowess and beautiful style of which he is endowed, spreading his flight with graceful combinations and sticking jabs. Marquez was knocked down in the fifth round and then was slowly broken down throughout the course of the match, disarmed by Donaire’s accurate punches.
The conclusion of the fight came when Donaire landed a left uppercut that sent Marquez slamming to the canvas in the final seconds of the eighth. He was able to steady himself long enough to finish the round, but his corner, sensing inevitable defeat, stopped the fight.
Donaire was too fast and powerful for Marquez, a fate that has been shared by many of the Filipino-born Californian’s over-matched opponents.
One can only hope Donaire will have better luck finding big-name opponents at 118 than he did at 115. The small difference in class will flatten out earlier advantages such as height. Spectators will see how he fares in a situation unusual for him, one that will ultimately indicate whether or not he is a champion calibre fighter.
As an amateur, Donaire won three national championships: the National Silver Gloves in 1998, National Junior Olympics in 1999, and the National USA Tournament in 2000. He also won the International Junior Olympics in 1999. Donaire and his brother Glenn reached the final stages of the light-flyweight US Olympic trials in 2000 and were eliminated by fellow Filipino-American Brian Viloria.
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