Ni GILBERT Espena
Tiwala si WBO super bantamweight champion Nonito Donaire Jr. na magwawagi si eight-division world titlist Manny Pacquiao sa nalalapit na laban kay dating WBO welterweight champion Timothy Bradley sa Abril 9 sa Las Vegas, Nevada.
Nakatakdang magdepensa si Donaire ng kanyang titulo laban kay WBO No. 4 at dating Hungarian Olympian Zsolt Bedak sa Abril 23 sa Cebu City kaya lubos ang kanyang paghahanda sa depensa sa harap ng Filipino boxing fans.
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Sa panayam ni boxing writer Robert Brown sa On The Ropes Boxing Radio Show, iginiit ni Donaire na inspirado pa rin siyang lumaban at manatiling kampeon na siyang motibasyon niya sa pagsasanay.
“The knowledge and the experience is as powerful as time, and now that I realize where I’m at and what I want to do, I think that’s the most essential key to be motivated, be inspired, work hard and know that I can be up there,” ani Donaire. “I can be on top and I’m going to be on top. It’s much more fierce because I’m a more dedicated fighter rather than a guy with youth.”
Ayon sa tinaguriang “The Filipino Flash,” gusto pa rin niyang manatiling kampeong pandaidig kaya laging seryoso sa pagsasanay at gusto niyang magpakita ng magandang laban sa harap ng kanyang mga kababayan.
“I’m working harder than before and I’m ready. There’s no fear and there’s a lot of motivation for the challenges I’m looking forward to,” giit ng dating pound-for-pound boxer. “It’s always an important fight but being in front of my countrymen and them feeling blessed and gifted for me fighting and for me having the support, it’s incredible. It’s an amazing surge of energy making motivation and inspiration. It’s incredible and I’m truly blessed with it, it’s very important.”
Sa kanyang laban kay Bedak, wala siyang anumang plano pero kung mapatutulog niya ang Hungarian ay gagawin niya.
“I don’t really have any prediction. I have to go out there and seek victory, and if I see a knockout, I always go for one, but if not, I’m just gonna be there and the victory is pretty much the key, it doesn’t matter what it is,” diin ni Donaire.
“As you know from the past, I’ve always been the type to want a more satisfying victory, which is a knockout victory. I always go for it when it’s presented in front of me, but if not, we’re gonna be boxing, we’re gonna be smart about it and we’re gonna be ready.”
Ayon kay Donaire, tulad niya, nananatiling gutom si Pacman sa panalo kung kaya’t walang dudang mangingibaw ito laban kay Bradley.
“It’s a fight that we’ve seen before and it’s a very good contested fight between the two guys. They go out there and they show what they’re capable of. In the last two fights we saw that Manny Pacquiao should have been awarded two victories, but that’s in the opinion of others,” giit ni Donaire. “In the fights that I’ve seen, Manny Pacquiao has a good advantage over Bradley, but for now with Bradley’s changes of coach and motivation — as well as Pacquiao’s with focus and politics — it may be a different fight coming into this third one.”
Ayon kay Donaire, kung magbabalik ang dating tikas sa pagbigwas ni Pacquiao ay posibleng mapatulog nito si Bradley.
“I would go for Pacquiao to win this fight because of what I’ve seen in the last two fights. But if Manny shows up unfocused and Bradley is more focused, then it’s going to be a different fight,” dagdag ni Donaire. “We’ve seen Bradley in some really tough fights. It depends how tough his chin is still, everybody breaks down. We’ve seen him in very difficult fights and if Manny can land those big punches that he usually does, there’s a possibility of Manny winning that. But it takes a Manny Pacquiao that’s focused and determined.”
