I’ve always said that Donito Donaire is more scientific than Manny Pacquiao. While Pacquiao is a volume puncher, Donaire is Mr. Calculated Shots.
Unlike Pacquiao, whose penchant for rapid-fire hits is legend, Donaire doesn’t just throw blows. Donaire’s punches are well-timed. He never swings when unsure of his target.
Donaire proved that again on Sunday in Carson, California, when he knocked out Nordine Oubaali in the fourth round to incredibly become world champion again.
The win was evident right in the first round, when Oubaali, the Moroccan-French defending champion, was consistently missing.
A keen student of the sweet science that is boxing, Donaire knew immediately he had a customer. Come to my parlor, baby.
In that momentous first round, Donaire just let Oubaali fire at him at will—and deftly avoided each missile with ducks and minor retreats while countering occasionally to steal a 10-9 win.
When Oubaali, 34, didn’t change tactics in the second round, swinging and missing with pendulum-like regularity, Donaire prepared his utensils for dinner in the next round.
A right-hander, Donaire’s real killer is his left hook.
He used that to inflict Oubaali’s first career knockdown late in the third round. When he survived the referee’s 8-count, Oubaali ran into another left to the jaw seconds later and fell a second time. He was groggy, wobbled, and was in no position to continue.
The bell saved Oubaali—but not for long.
At 1:52 in the fourth round, Donaire bombed him three times—left hook to the jaw, right to the eye, left uppercut to the chin—and his crown was gone, his unbeaten 17-0 mark wiped out.
Donaire, who won his first world crown 14 years ago, wasn’t only a champ again, but also became the oldest world bantamweight champion in history at 38.
I’ve always believed in Donaire’s ability to win and, yes, he couldn’t have won his 41st in 47 fights (27 KOs) without having prepared hard for it.
“The human body is an incredible machine,” Donaire said. “What the mind conceives, the body achieves.”
He can be cerebral, too.
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Happy birthday to Coach Dayong (June 2), one of the assistant coaches of San Miguel Beer. Cheers!