Nietes just couldn’t lose this time
The Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay exuded an unusually bright aura last Saturday with Pinoy Pride 25.
The fight card featured the rematch between WBO light flyweight champion Donnie “Ahas” Nietes and Mexico’s mandatory challenger Moises Fuentes in the main event, and the WBO international flyweight bout between Milan Melindo and Mexico’s Martin Tecuapetla, which Melindo won by majority decision.
But the brightest star that night was Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire Jr., the four-division world champion who was met with thunderous applause when he was introduced inside the venue.
Donaire sat with the television panel. Nietes had absolutely no idea that he would be getting so much more from Donaire than what he had expected.
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How could Nietes lose on this night of nights when he had at least three coaches behind him, one of them a world champion himself?
Then there’s Donaire’s father Nonito “Dodong” Sr., who was seated behind him, methodically studying the situation, and his regular coach-trainer.
For the first time, the television audience had an advantage over the coliseum crowd, because they could hear what Donaire was annotating and shouting. He could speak English, Filipino and Cebuano very fluently and clearly.
Now what the live audience did not know was that Donaire had gotten so excited at some point during the seventh round of the main event, he unconsciously shouted instructions to Nietes like he was the coach—moves that he would do if he himself was inside the ring. Donaire did it continuously until the ninth round.
Just before Fuentes was TKO’d, Donaire’s instruction to Nietes was very audible on the boob tube.
“Throw your combination! Give him your overhand right!” Donaire shouted. “Overhand right! Overhand right!”
Nietes did as he was told and Fuentes came tumbling down for good in the ninth.
Still, I had to check with the two other panelists if my observation was correct. They said it was.
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Despite his profuse apologies on the Anderson Cooper show, NBA commissioner Adam Silver was not about to forgive banned (for life) LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling for his racist comments.
“Why did he wait several weeks before apologizing?” Silver wanted to know.
Sterling said it was Magic Johnson’s fault.
“He wanted me to keep quiet.”
