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By Ronnie Nathanielsz
WBO super bantamweight champion Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire is looking amazing in training camp.
Next Saturday night, Donaire will defend his world title against undefeated mandatory challenger Jessie Magdaleno at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. The Top Rank pay-per-view event will be headlined by the return of Manny Pacquiao, who challenges Jessie Vargas for the WBO welterweight championship.
The card marks the first pay-per-view where Filipino fights Pacquiao and Donaire are featured on the same bill. Ironically, both of their opponents are based in Las Vegas.
In an interview with The Main Event, Donaire laughed off Magdaleno’s decision to dye his hair to boost his confidence.
Nonito, told us “it was a way to take his mind off the fight...something that keeps his (Magdaleno’s) mind off the fight. Something that keeps his focus away from the fight. He is scared of me. Its fear.”
Donaire said he is “physically and mentally well into this fight” and that he and Cuban trainer Ismael Salas had shown him “a better way to fight..more precise, more accurate.”
Nonito who sparred six rounds for the last time with Jose Gonzalez, who is a cousin of pound-for-pound No. 1 Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez who has “a good style similar to unbeaten Jessie Magdaleno.”
He said he won’t have any problem going twelve rounds if he has to.
Nonito revealed that Magdaleno’s team was “working on my left hook” but “hadn’t seen what we got.”
Donaire who had earlier expressed his elation at being featured alongside the legendary Manny Pacquiao which he had been dreaming about for years said “ we plan to represent the Philippines to the fullest and raise our country’s flag in victory.”
