FILE – Nonito Donaire of the Philippines and Jessie Magdaleno exchange punches during their WBO junior featherweight championship fight at the Thomas & Mack Center on November 5, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Christian Petersen/Getty Images/AFP
Nonito Donaire Jr. likes his chances against Zolani Tete, the South African WBO bantamweight champion, in the World Boxing Super Series semifinal.
Donaire, who is also defending his WBA (super) bantamweight crown, sees Tete’s style as an ideal fit for his.
“Tete’s a very skillful boxer, but my style’s made for his, power-wise,” Donaire told boxingscene.com. “There are a lot of ways to dissect and neutralize his style so my power’s at full force. If I can land my best punches, I believe I can stop him.”
Donaire (39-5, 25 KOs), who turns 36 on Friday, earned a four-round stoppage over Ryan Burnett in the quarterfinal two weeks ago to win the WBA belt after the Irish fighter suffered a back injury.
The 30-year-old Tete (28-3, 21 KOs) is coming off a unanimous decision victory over Mikhail Aloyan last month in Russia. He hasn’t lost since 2012, winning his past 12 fights.
Donaire, however, is confident he has the tools to reign again in his return to the 118-pound division after spending time as a super bantamweight and featherweight where he also won titles.
“My main focus is to advance through the next stage and win this tournament. My power is tremendous,” said Donaire.
“With that and my ability to come in aggressively, smothering a lot of punches, I don’t doubt that I can’t stop anyone. I’m a dangerous puncher in this division.”