THE BREAKDOWN How Donaire Beat Arce

Published

12 years ago

December 17, 2012

Lee Wylie

Donaire Arce 121215 008a The case can be made that Donaire is the best pound for pound fighter in the world. (Chris Farina-Top Rank)

On Saturday night, Nonito Donaire capped off a sensational year –one which will surely see him take fighter of the year honors- after knocking out Jorge Arce in the third round of their fight in Houston, Texas. Arce, who announced his retirement from boxing in the ring to Larry Merchant, was simply no match for Donaire, who was able to control and dominate the tough little Mexican from start to finish. Here, I’d like to illustrate how Donaire was able to end the fight so efficiently and abruptly.

Instead of coming out all guns blazing, Jorge Arce, who was as powerfully built as I’ve seen him look, defied reputation and came out far more passively than he usually does. It was actually a very smart strategy from Arce, given the way in which the heavy-handed Donaire has dispatched of overly aggressive opponents in the past. Arce knew that by staying on the outside before coming in behind single punches, then getting back out again, Donaire would be forced into taking the fight to Arce, thus, possibly eliminating his counter-punching threat. What continues to impresses me with Donaire, more so than any of his other vast physical gifts, is his mind…he’s constantly thinking. Where a lot of fighters may have resorted to applying relentless pressure in this situation, feeling somewhat frustrated by Arce’s negative tactics, Donaire sought out another way of opening his opponent up. Instead of trying to cut the ring off, eating up the distance using sustained pressure, Donaire applied subtle pressure using small shuffling steps, along with feints and single jabs, looking to draw a lead out from Arce. Donaire wanted the fight to come to him.

donaireArceBreakdown 1

Notice here how Donaire is approaching Arce in a subtle manner. Donaire is edging forward, taking small shuffling steps before taking a half step back. By doing this, Donaire is giving Arce a false sense of distance, hoping that he’s going to lead off so that he can counter. Even though Arce doesn’t react to it here, one can see Donaire’s intentions –edge forward, half-step back, draw out a response and counter.

In this sequence, Donaire’s subtle pressure pays off. Here, as Donaire is edging forward, Arce responds by leading with a right hand. As Donaire takes a half-step back and leans away, Arce falls short and is now off-balance. Donaire is now in a perfect position to counter and lands a short left uppercut to the chin of Arce.

This was also one of the many subtle baiting techniques that heavyweight knockout artist Joe Louis used.

donaireArceBreakdown 3

Here’s Joe Louis doing what he does best. After edging forward, Louis baits his opponent into leading by sticking a left arm out. As his opponent responds and leaps in with a left hook, Louis takes a half-step back and counters with a short left hook on the inside, sending his opponent down to the canvas. Louis, like Donaire, was brilliant at forcing his opponents into opening up and making mistakes by applying subtle pressure.

The more frequently Arce was tagged, the more he began to open up. Donaire’s subtle pressure, along with those single jabs and feints, really drew out the attack from Arce, who, at heart, is really a blood and guts fighter. As a result, even more counter-punching opportunities came along for Donaire.

donaireArceBreakdown 4

Here, Arce leads with a jab but is countered by a Donaire jab. Notice how Donaire blocks Arce’s jab using his rear glove as he’s landing his jab. Donaire has an astute understanding of timing and distance. He knows that his superior speed and length will allow him to reach and find the target before Arce can.

The first knockdown in the fight illustrated one of Donaire’s signature counter-punching techniques perfectly.

donaireArceBreakdown 5

Here’s Donaire parrying and countering over the top of a jab. As Arce leads with a jab, notice how Donaire turns his rear hand over so that his palm is pointing towards the punch. Donaire intercepts the jab and counters with a short right hand over the top. Although the knockdown was a little scrappy, there was still a lot of skill involved.

This counter-punching technique requires great hand speed as well as excellent hand eye coordination. It was also one of Roy Jones Jr’s favorite countering techniques.

donaireArceBreakdown 6

Here’s Roy Jones Jr. parrying a jab with his rear hand and countering over the top with a left hook/straight right combination. Notice how Jones’s left glove is carried low in the first picture –this draws the jab out. There are a lot of similarities between Jones and Donaire. Especially the way in which they counter after a parry.

After the knockdown, Jorge Arce began taking more chances on offense and started to take the fight to Donaire. It wasn’t too long before the inevitable happened.

Here is where the second knockdown took place. As Arce leads with a left hook, Donaire ducks and rolled under to the outside. As Donaire pressed his left elbow into Arce’s right shoulder, freezing Arce, he fired a right hand over the top and outside of Arce’s line of vision. Even though Donaire threw another two left hooks that sent Arce to the canvas, the right hand landed here was the real damaging blow.

The finale will likely be remembered for being another picturesque left hook knockout by Donaire. However, I thought his composure in taking out a hurt fighter was particularly noteworthy. In the same scenario, you’ll often see a fighter throwing wildly in trying to close the show. Not Nonito Donaire.

donaireArceBreakdown 8

With Arce hurt, Donaire moves in calmly. Instead of swinging for the fences, Donaire tries to bait Arce into opening up again. See how Donaire edges forward and tries to counter Arce’s jab with a right hand counter. Arce manages to avoid Donaires first attempt at closing the show.

Undeterred, Donaire moves in calmly again. This time, he launches a right cross followed by a left uppercut. Both shots partially land and Arce manages to survive yet another Donaire assault.

Donaire’s patience finally pays off.

donaireArceBreakdown 10

Here, Donaire manages to finally close the show via his spring-loaded left hook. Donaire’s left hook, either as a counter or a lead, may just be the best punch in all of boxing. It’s certainly the one shot that I’d select for encapsulating both boxing’s brutality and beauty in a single moment.

All in all, it was another spectacular performance by Nonito Donaire. Sure, nobody really gave Jorge Arce a real chance of winning the fight, but Donaire must be given credit for taking Arce away from his initial game plan, and out within a few frames. Last week, we saw a sensational counter-punching finish by Juan Manuel Marquez when he knocked out Manny Pacquiao with an over-hand right at the end of the sixth round. In the dying moments of that fight, we saw a fighter pay the ultimate price for being overly aggressive. Ultimately, Manny Pacquiao’s deliberate and predictable attack left nothing to the imagination and pretty much made Marquez’s mind up for him. Marquez also had close to 42 rounds of in-ring experience with his familiar opponent prior to that fight ending moment. Jorge Arce is certainly no Manny Pacquiao, but during the early going of this fight, Donaire found in front of him an unfamiliar and unwilling opponent. Regardless of ability, I’ve always felt these are the most difficult fighters to put away -the Joshua Clottey’s against Manny Pacquiao, and some of the early career opponents of Mike Tyson or a light heavyweight Roy Jones. As good as Manny Pacquiao is, his style accommodates that of a hard hitting counter-puncher.

Donaire, by way of his superior ring intelligence, assessed the situation and managed to figure out a way of opening up an opponent who wasn’t really looking to open up. As I’ve already mentioned, once Arce was floored, we saw him resort back to something more like his old self where Donaire would soon put the finishing touches on yet another masterpiece, but this clearly wasn’t the case at the beginning of the fight.

I really don’t want to delve too deep into all of the PED talk that seems to be dominating boxing right now, but Nonito Donaire MUST be applauded for his participation in the 24/7/365 VADA testing that he’s currently undergoing. There’s an obvious problem out there at the moment and Donaire is doing his best in trying to eradicate it.

Right, now let’s get back to Donaire’s boxing ability. Personally, I think Nonito Donaire is the most creative offensive fighter in the sport right now. He’s at the opposite end of the spectrum to the likes of Floyd Mayweather and Andre Ward who are always looking to stymie and stifle. Yes, Donaire’s different. He’s looking to unlock and unload. He’s always searching for the knockout. And what’s even more worrying for future opponents is the fact that he’s becoming a more intelligent fighter with each passing fight. During his last three outings, Donaire has shown that he now has the deciphering skills to figure out an opponent’s style and adapt to it accordingly -we saw him pressurizing and getting inside on a taller opponent in Jeffery Mathebula, and against Toshiaki Nishioka and now Jorge Arce, we’ve seen a more strategic, trap setting Donaire. A few fight ago, relying on nothing but his speed and power, Donaire seemed to be a little left hand happy. This is no longer the case.

Hopefully, promotional issues can be put aside for once and boxing fans will get to see Nonito Donaire versus Abner Mares in 2013. Should that fight be made and should Donaire win, which is not beyond the realms of possibility, then I think Nonito Donaire would have a very good case on his hands for being recognized as the very best fighter in the sport.

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Lee Wylie

Skylar Lacy Blocked for Lamar Jackson before Making his Mark in Boxing

Published

2 days ago

January 19, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Skylar-Lacy-Blocked-for-Lamar-Jackson-Before-Making-his-Mark-in-Boxing

Skylar Lacy, a six-foot-seven heavyweight, returns to the ring on Sunday, Feb. 2, opposing Brandon Moore on a card in Flint, Michigan, airing worldwide on DAZN.

As this is being written, the bookmakers hadn’t yet posted a line on the bout, but one couldn’t be accused of false coloring by calling the 10-round contest a 50/50 fight. And if his frustrating history is any guide, Lacy will have another draw appended to his record or come out on the wrong side of a split decision.

This should not be construed as a tip to wager on Moore. “Close fights just don’t seem to go my way,” says the boxer who played alongside future multi-year NFL MVP Lamar Jackson at the University of Louisville.

A 2021 National Golden Gloves champion, Skylar Lacy came up short in his final amateur bout, losing a split decision to future U.S. Olympian Joshua Edwards. His last Team Combat League assignment resulted in another loss by split decision and he was held to a draw in both instances when stepping up in class as a pro. “In my mind, I’m still undefeated,” says Lacy (8-0-2, 6 KOs). “No one has ever kicked my ass.”

Lacy was the B-side in both of those draws, the first coming in a 6-rounder against Top Rank fighter Antonio Mireles on a Top Rank show in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, and the second in an 8-rounder against George Arias, a Lou DiBella fighter on a DiBella-promoted card in Philadelphia.

Lacy had the Mireles fight in hand when he faded in the homestretch. The altitude was a factor. Lake Tahoe, Nevada (officially Stateline) sits 6,225 feet above sea level. The fight with Arias took an opposite tack. Lacy came on strong after a slow start to stave off defeat.

Skylar will be the B-side once again in Michigan. The card’s promoter, former world title challenger Dmitriy Salita, inked Brandon Moore (16-1, 10 KOs) in January. “A capable American heavyweight with charisma, athleticism and skills is rare in today’s day and age. Brandon has got all these ingredients…”, said Salita in the press release announcing the signing. (Salita has an option on Skylar Lacy’s next pro fight in the event that Skylar should win, but the promoter has a larger investment in Moore who was previously signed to Top Rank, a multi-fight deal that evaporated after only one fight.)

Both Lacy and Moore excelled in other sports. The six-foot-six Moore was an outstanding basketball player in high school in Fort Lauderdale and at the NAIA level in college. Lacy was an all-state football lineman in Indiana before going on to the University of Louisville where he started as an offensive guard as a redshirt sophomore, blocking for freshman phenom Lamar Jackson. “Lamar was hard-working and humble,” says Lacy about the player who is now one of the world’s highest-paid professional athletes.

When Lacy committed to Louisville, the head coach was Charlie Strong who went on to become the head coach at the University of Texas. Lacy was never comfortable with Strong’s successor Bobby Petrino and transferred to San Jose State. Having earned his degree in only three years (a BA in communications) he was eligible immediately but never played a down because of injuries.

Returning to Indianapolis where he was raised by his truck dispatcher father, a single parent, Lacy gravitated to Pat McPherson’s IBG (Indy Boxing and Grappling) Gym on the city’s east side where he was the rare college graduate pounding the bags alongside at-risk kids from the city’s poorer neighborhoods.

Lacy built a 12-6 record across his two seasons in Team Combat League while representing the Las Vegas Hustle (2023) and the Boston Butchers (2024).

For the uninitiated, a Team Combat League (TCL) event typically consists of 24 fights, each consisting of one three-minute round. The concept finds no favor with traditionalists, but Lacy is a fan. It’s an incentive for professional boxers to keep in shape between bouts without disturbing their professional record and, notes Lacy, it’s useful in exposing a competitor to different styles.

“It paid the bills and kept me from just sitting around the house,” says Lacy whose 12-6 record was forged against 13 different opponents.

As a sparring partner, Lacy has shared the ring with some of the top heavyweights of his generation, e.g., Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte. He was one of Fury’s regular sparring partners during the Gypsy King’s trilogy with Deontay Wilder. He worked with Joshua at Derrick James’ gym in Dallas and at Ben Davison’s gym in England, helping Joshua prepare for his date in Saudi Arabia with Francis Ngannou and had previously sparred with Ngannou at the UFC Performance Center in Las Vegas. Skylar names traveling to new places as one of his hobbies and he got to scratch that itch when he joined Whyte’s camp in Portugal.

As to the hardest puncher he ever faced, he has no hesitation: “Ngannou,” he says. “I negotiated a nice price to spend a week in his camp and the first time he hit me I knew I should have asked for more.”

Lacy is confident that having shared the ring with some of the sport’s elite heavyweights will get him over the hump in what will be his first 10-rounder (Brandon Moore has never had to fight beyond eight rounds, having won his three 10-rounders inside the distance). Lacy vs. Moore is the co-feature to Claressa Shields’ homecoming fight with Danielle Perkins. Shields, basking in the favorable reviews accorded the big-screen biopic based on her first Olympic journey (“The Fire Inside”) will attempt to capture a title in yet another weight class at the expense of the 42-year-old Perkins, a former professional basketball player.

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Mizuki Hiruta Dominates in her U.S. Debut and Omar Trinidad Wins Too at Commerce

Published

4 days ago

January 18, 2025

David A. Avila

Mizuki-Hiruta-Dominates-in-her-U.S.-Debut-and-Trinidad-Wins-Too-at-Commerce

Japan’s Mizuki Hiruta smashed through Mexico’s Maribel Ramirez with ease in winning by technical decision and local hero Omar Trinidad continued his assault on the featherweight division on Friday.

Hiruta (7-0, 2 KOs), who prefers to be called “Mimi,” made her American debut with an impressive performance against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez (15-11-4) and retained the WBO super flyweight world title by unanimous decision at Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.

The pink-haired Japanese southpaw champion quickly proved to be quicker, stronger and even better than advertised. In the opening round Ramirez landed on the floor twice after throwing errant blows. On one instance, it could have been ruled a knockdown but it was not a convincing blow.

In the second round, Ramirez again attacked and again was met with a Hiruta check right hook and down went the Mexican. This time referee Ray Corona gave the eight-count and the fight resumed.

It was Hiruta’s third title defense but this time it was on American soil. She seemed nervous by the prospect of getting a favorable review from the more than 700 fans inside the casino tent.

For more than a year Hiruta has been training off and on with Manny Robles in the L.A. area. Now that she has a visa, she has spent considerable time this year learning the tricks of the trade. They proved explosively effective.

Though Mexico City’s Ramirez has considerable experience against world champions, she discovered that Hiruta was not easy to hit. Often, the Japanese champion would slip and counter with precision.

It was an impressive American debut, though the fight was stopped in the eighth round after a collision of heads. The scores were tallied and all three saw Hiruta the winner by scores of 80-71 twice and 79-72.

“I’m so happy. I could have done much more,” said Hiruta through interpreter Yuriko Miyata. “I wanted to do more things that Manny Robles taught me.”

Trinidad Wins Too

Omar Trinidad (18-0-1, 13 KOs) discovered that challenger Mike Plania (31-5, 18 KOs) has a very good chin and staying power. But over 10 rounds Trinidad proved to be too fast and too busy for the Filipino challenger.

Immediately it was evident that the East L.A. featherweight was too quick and too busy for Plania who preferred a counter-puncher attack that never worked.

“He was strong,” said Trinidad. “He took everything.”

After 10 redundant rounds all three judges scored for Trinidad 100-90 twice and 99-91. He retains the WBC Continental Americas title.

Other Bouts

Ali Akhmedov (23-1, 17 KOs) blasted out Malcolm Jones (17-5-1) in less than two rounds. A dozen punches by Akhmedov forced referee Thomas Taylor to stop the super middleweight fight.

Iyana “Roxy” Verduzco (3-0) bloodied Lindsey Ellis in the first round and continued the speedy assault in the next two rounds. Referee Ray Corona saw enough and stopped the fight in favor of Verduzco at 1:34 of the third round.

Gloria Munguilla (7-1) and Brook Sibrian (5-2) lit up the boxing ring with a nonstop clash for eight rounds in their light flyweight fight. Munguilla proved effective with a slip-and-counter attack. Sibrian adjusted and made the fight closer in the last four rounds but all three judges favored Munguilla.

More Winners

Joshua Anton, Tayden Beltran, Adan Palma, and Alexander Gueche all won their bouts.

Photos credit: Al Applerose

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More

Published

5 days ago

January 16, 2025

David A. Avila

Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More

Best wishes to the survivors of the Los Angeles wildfires that took place last week and are still ongoing in small locales.

Most of the heavy damage took place in the western part of L.A. near the ocean due to Santa Ana winds. Another very hot spot was in Altadena just north of the Rose Bowl. It was a horrific tragedy.

Hopefully the worst is over.

Pro boxing returns with 360 Boxing Promotions spotlighting East L.A.’s Omar Trinidad (17-0-1, 13 KOs) defending a regional featherweight title against Mike Plania (31-4, 18 KOs) on Friday, Jan. 17, at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.

“I’m the king of L.A. boxing and I’ll be ready to put on a show headlining again in the main event. This is my year, I’m ready to challenge and defeat any of the featherweight world champions,” said Trinidad.

UFC Fight Pass will stream the Hollywood Night fight card that includes a female world championship fight and other intriguing match-ups.

Tom Loeffler heads 360 Promotions and once again comes full force with a hot prospect in Trinidad. If you’re not familiar with Loeffler’s history of success, he introduced America to Oleksandr Usyk, Gennady “GGG” Golovkin and the brothers Wladimir and Vitaly Kltischko.

“We’ve got a wealth of international talent and local favorites to kick off our 2025 in grand style,” said Loeffler.

He knows talent.

Trinidad hails from the Boyle Heights area of East L.A. near the Los Angeles riverbed. Several fighters from the past came from that exact area including the first Golden Boy, Art Aragon.

Aragon was a huge gate attraction during the late 1940s until 1960. He was known as a lady’s man and dated several Hollywood starlets in his time. Though he never won a world title he did fight world champions Carmen Basilio, Jimmy Carter and Lauro Salas. He was more or less the king of the Olympic Auditorium and Los Angeles boxing during his career.

Other famous boxers from the Boyle Heights area were notorious gangster Mickey Cohen and former world champion Joey Olivo.

Can Trinidad reach world title status?

Facing Trinidad will be Filipino fighter Plania who’s knocked off a couple of prospects during his career including Joshua “Don’t Blink” Greer and Giovanni Gutierrez. The fighter from General Santos in the Philippines can crack and hold his own in the boxing ring.

It’s a very strong fight card and includes WBO world titlist Mizuki Hiruta of Japan who defends the super flyweight title against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez. It’s a tough matchup for Hiruta who makes her American debut. You can’t miss her with that pink hair and she has all the physical tools to make a splash in this country.

Mizukii Hiruta

Two other female bouts are also planned, including light flyweight banger L.A.’s Gloria Munguilla (6-1) against Coachella’s Brook Sibrian (5-1) in a match set for six rounds. Both are talented fighters. Another female fight includes super featherweights Iyana “Right Hook Roxy” Verduzco (2-0) versus Lindsey Ellis (2-1) in another six-rounder. Ellis can crack with all her wins coming via knockout. Verduzco is a multi-national titlist as an amateur.

Others scheduled to perform are Ali Akhmedov, Joshua Anton, Adan Palma and more.

Doors open at 4:30 p.m.

Boxing and the Media

The sport of professional boxing is currently in flux. It’s always in flux but no matter what people may say or write, boxing will survive.

Whether you like Jake Paul or not, he proved boxing has worldwide appeal with monstrous success in his last show. He has media companies looking at the numbers and imagining what they can do with the sport.

Sure, UFC is negotiating a massive billion dollar deal with media companies, as is WWE, both are very similar in that they provide combat entertainment. You don’t need to know the champions because they really don’t matter. Its about the attractions.

Boxing is different. The good champions last and build a following that endures even beyond their careers a la Mike Tyson.

MMA can’t provide that longevity, but it does provide entertainment.

Currently, there is talk of establishing a boxing league again. It’s been done over and over but we shall see if it sticks this time.

Pro boxing is the true warrior’s path and that means a solo adventure. It’s a one-on-one sport and that appeals to people everywhere. It’s the oldest sport that can be traced to prehistoric times. You don’t need classes in Brazilian Jiujitsu, judo, kick boxing or wrestling. Just show up in a boxing gym and they can put you to work.

It’s a poor person’s path that can lead to better things and most importantly discipline.

Photos credit: Lina Baker

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