Interview with Nonito "The Filipino Flash" Donaire

By:Jeff Townsend
Bay Area Sports Drive
E-Mail Jeff

Bay Area Sports Drive had the distinct pleasure of interviewing arguably the best boxer living in the San Francisco Bay Area, Nonito "The Filipino Flash" Donaire (23-1, 15 KOs) who lives in San Leandro, California and trains at Undisputed Boxing Gym in San Carlos.
 He is the current interim WBA super flyweight champion and is ranked by Ring Magazine as the #4 pound-for-pound fighter in the world. We caught up with Nonito as he was preparing for his next fight scheduled for July 10, 2010 in Puerto Rico against Hernan "Tyson" Marquez (27-1, 20 KOs) of Mexico.

BASD: How has the training camp gone for the upcoming fight with Tyson Marquez?

Nonito Donaire: It has been excellent. I have Robert Garcia coming up with good gameplans. My sparring partners, such as Steven Luevano, have been great. These guys are much bigger than I am. They are making me move a lot, they are pressuring me a lot. BASD: How would you describe your boxing style? When I watch you fight, you appear to be a boxer/puncher with very good boxing skills.

ND: My style is more of a mimic from everything. When I was young, I watched Tyson, De La Hoya, Trinidad. And Chavez - that is why I am able to move my head and slip punches or I can counter. I think you could say that I am a boxer/puncher. My father based my style and hook on Alexis Arguello's hook.

BASD: You landed a picture-perfect left hook to knockout Vic Darchinyan. Break down how that punch came to be the knockout shot.

ND: We planned that punch from the get-go. When I threw that hook, I felt like I went through his body, like I was a ghost and went through him. Then all of a sudden he falls in front of me.

BASD: There has been a lot of talk about a rematch with Vic Darchinyan. The fight was very close to being signed several times but his side seems to be making it difficult for the fight to actually happen. What is your take on the situation?

ND: At this point I am pretty fed up. I am not going to wait. The fight should have happened and they apparently did not want to make it happen "right now". I don't know what type of game they are playing but I don't like playing games. It is usually 50/50 but he was getting $100,000 more than me. I accepted the fight.... why didn't he want to make the fight happen? That is the question.

BASD: How do you stay motivated and focused when a fight repeatedly falls through like that or a fighter like Eric Morel that straight out refuses to fight you even for good money?ND: You can't. The motivation just disappeared. It was daunting to go back and forth with these fights falling through. It makes you mentally overtrain. I even considered quitting. I said, 'This is ridiculous, I am done".

BASD: The last 6 of your last 7 wins have come via knockout. What do you attribute that to and have you been concentrating more on getting the KO?

ND: Before, I was a 'short notice' guy. I get tired because they give me a week or so notice and I am there. This time around, I am very prepared for the fight. You get so exhausted if you are not properly trained. I was always the opponent that they would bring in.
BASD: You stated in a blog entry at the beginning of June that you were anticipating that it would be hell to make 115. How has it been this time around?

ND: It is a lot harder this time. I have been working with Victor Conte and SNAC (Scientific Nutrition for Advanced Conditioning). With the nutrition program, he is helping me to recover faster. The weight is sticking a little bit stronger but with the recovery, I am able to work out 3 times a day.

BASD: Tell me about Victor Conte. How long have you been working with him?

ND: I just started working with Victor about a month ago. People might disagree because of his past but when I got to know him, he was this brilliant person. It is all about increasing your oxygen intake. I have asthma. That is why I need to be in shape all the time. It comes back when I am out of shape. The hypoxic training is a high altitude simulation that I am working on with him.

BASD: Is Victor Conte giving you any supplements to take?

ND: I take the iron pills, HypOxygen, Aerobitine. The ZMA is excellent. It makes me sleep really well and you recover. I just wake up, take the meal replacement and supplements and I am ready to go. I sparred today, I am cutting weight but I still have energy.

BASD: Your father served as your trainer for your entire boxing career up until maybe a year or two ago. The Penalosa brothers came in to serve as your trainers and you just recently added Robert Garcia as co-trainer. What was the reason why you made that change and did it affect your relationship?

ND: There were a lot things that went on. I love my father as a father but there were a lot of things that I felt I was not improving. I fought the same way. There is a little bit of animosity. I love my father and my family but it was beyond that. It is a little bit like a traditional Asian family. To your father, you will always be 12 years old. You never grow up.
Thank you, Nonito, for taking your time to talk with us.

Check out www.filipinoflash.com for the latest news on Nonito.