Last Saturday night, Nonito Donaire unified the IBF and WBO super-bantamweight titles with his victory over Jeffery Mathebula. The eyes of the sport seemed to be fixed on his fight 2 days ago. Not only media, but it seems like every one of his rivals had a thing or two to say about his performance.
Guillermo Rigondeaux is a boxer closely linked to Donaire because he holds part of the super-bantamweight championship (WBA Title). He reached out to ThaBoxingVoice.com through his advisor and reviewed Donaire-Mathebula. “He (Mathebula) was an ok opponent. He had a belt. I give Mathebula credit. Mathebula put some pressure on Nonito but not enough pressure and he should have jabbed more,” stated Rigondeaux. “Nonito on the other hand, he didn’t look spectacular. He said he wants one more belt in the division, he should come try and take mines, but I bet he will keep ducking me.”
Rumors have already run rampant about who Nonito’s next opponent will be. Rigondeaux says, “It’s probably going to be the Japanese fighter Nishioka or Jorge Arce. I mean Nishioka is 34 or 35 so I think that’s where he will go.”
As far as the big rumor that it could be Donaire vs. Arce in October, Rigondeaux said, “Arce isn’t what he once was. It’s a fight that Donaire wins. I was on the same card as Arce last month and he didn’t look to great. So yes, Donaire will probably choose him instead of me.”
One thing Rigondeaux wanted to make clear is that he’s not going anywhere, anytime soon from Donaire rearview mirror. “He said he wants to be undisputed right? I have a belt and then there’s another belt out there. If he wants to get that belt, go for it, and then let’s meet for all the belts,” stated Rigondeaux.
Donaire actually stated he wanted one more belt and then he would move to featherweight. Rigondeaux laughed and stated, “Its fine. If he doesn’t want to fight me at 122, then I’ll follow him to 126. If and when he sees me in that division, he’ll feel the strongest left hand he’s ever felt in his life, you can count on that.”
