WHENEVER the subject of Filipino boxers crops up, the question the sport’s most avid enthusiasts usually ask is: Who will be the next Manny Pacquiao?
From where I stand, the question that should be asked first is: Who is the next Nonito Donaire?
Because before the Philippines can have the next Pacquiao, it should first have the next Donaire.
And there is little debate that Pacquiao and Donaire ushered in the best era for Philippine boxing. While Pacquiao was definitely the bigger star, there is no doubt Donaire put up one hell of the performance at the championship level.
So, at this point, who is the next Nonito Donaire? My answer: None at the moment.
We can name a lot of prominent Filipino boxers now, but the sad thing is none of them comes close to Donaire. And much more than Pacquiao. At 24 years old, Donaire burst into prominence with a massive upset of Vic Darchinyan in July 2007 to win the International Boxing Federation and International Boxing Organization flyweight titles.
After beating Darchinyan, Donaire racked up 13 straight wins in championship bouts spanning almost five years before getting beaten by Guillermo Rigondeaux in April 2013. And eight of Donaire’s championship bout wins came by stoppage or knockout.
That is no small feat. In fact, that is a mean feat. Since no Filipino boxer has matched Donaire’s accomplishments, what more of Pacquiao’s? While Filipino fighters such as Donnie Nietes, Jerwin Ancajas and Pedro Taduran had won world titles and made successful defenses, there is no doubt Donaire stood above them.
There are other popular Filipino boxers that cropped up in the past years, some of which were touted to be prominent future world champions. But so far, none of them really shined the way Donaire and Pacquiao did.
I hate to mention their names here. So, what does it take to be the next Donaire or Pacquiao?
Fundamentally, Donaire and Pacquiao have fast hands and skill levels that can be considered world-class. And they were never “runners” or “clinchers” in the ring. When they fought, they really fought.
A lot of boxing analysts called Donaire “special,” and a lot of superlatives have been said about Pacquiao.
Donaire and Pacquiao also benefited from the excellence offered by the United States training ecosystem for boxers. And we are speaking here about top-notch trainers, nutritionists, conditioning coaches, among others.
So, is there something wrong with the Philippine training ecosystem for boxers? My answer is: yes.
I would not discuss that issue now. But just look at Naoya Inoue and Junto Nakatani of Japan. Both of them exemplify the excellence of their country’s ecosystem to train boxers.
When they squared off last May 2, Inoue and Nakatani were both undefeated, while Inoue held titles in four weight divisions and Nakatani in three divisions.
Perhaps the state of the Philippine ecosystem for training boxers also reflects a bigger problem, which is too much focus on basketball.
So, what else should we expect from other sports that Filipinos can excel in? The answer is very clear. The Philippines has only one female tennis player in the top 50. Her name? Alex Eala, who gained a lot from foreign-based training.
How I wished that other Filipino tennis players, such as Australia-based Lizette Cabrera and Marian Capadocia, would have a chance to enter the top 100 in the next two years.
In the meantime, the Czech Republic and Russia are producing top-notch female tennis players in respectable numbers. And bashing Eala has become a bit common over social media. What a shame.
Back to boxing. Perhaps not expecting who will be the next Donaire or Pacquiao will help lessen the frustration of Filipino boxing fans.
I just did that.
