The Flash’s flashback, the Executioner’s slowburn

EARLIER today, the most exciting fight for Filipino fight fans was a replay. Bernard “The Executioner” Hopkins did not really fight Ronald "Winky" Wright, he followed the brilliant strategy of his trainer cornerman, Freddie “I promise you” Roach, to the letter and kept the smaller and younger Wright at bay for 12 rather boring rounds. The cut that Wright sustained above his left eye in the third round was the single most galvanizing moment of the match. Hopkins thoroughly deserved the unanimous decision win and the anger of the fat guy at ringside who kept on standing up and yelling what may have amounted to insults on Hopkins’ (and maybe also Wright’s) mother, for raising such pansy world-class fighters -- one surely bound for the hall of fame. Shame on both of them Sunday. The weigh-in scuffle at the Mandalay Bay had more excitement and elicited more damage – Roach reportedly tore a stomach muscle.

On the other hand, Nonito Donaire Jr.’s devastating KO win over the previously undefeated (28-0) Vic Darchinyan two weeks ago (shown on GMA 7 while Hopkins-Wright was on ABS-CBN 3 -- which scored a coup by hiring Donaire to do commentary for Hopkins-Wright) was a picture-perfect match-ending display of courageous and smart counterfighting that suddenly placed the Filipino-American in the top 5 of his division. Taller, younger, and just as powerful as the Armenian slugger, Donaire also had a burning desire to avenge his older brother Glenn’s just as damaging KO loss to Darchinyan.

The faux redhead Czar Amonsot’s defeat to Michael Katsidis for the WBO interim lightweight belt, on the other hand, had more thrills for half the number of rounds than the 12-round chess-match Chinese checkers (more chess than Chinese checkers) dance-o-rama of the Hopkins-Wright championship bout. Two of the most exciting portions of the Amonsot-Katsidis fight were the knockdowns Amonsot suffered in the second and 10th rounds. A fairer judge would have declared it a draw at worst and a slight win on points for Amonsot at best, but despite the profuse bleeding and swelling on Katsidis' left eye, Amonsot did not do enough to convince the judges to give him the win. The Aussie fighter claimed that the damage to his left eye was caused by Amonsot's elbows and head butts. "I said I was going to introduce new blood to the sport and I guess you saw a lot of new blood," Katsidis said in a post-fight interview. He failed to mention that most of the blood was his. Match referee Jay Nady could have stopped the fight before the 12th round due to Katsidis’ badly-injured eye and could have warned the Australian-based slugger as often as he did Amonsot for infractions, still…Okay, Amonsot lost but at least he wasn’t knocked out and didn’t have his hair turn back black.

“The Filipino Flash” Nonito Donaire’s victory to claim both the IBF and IBO 112-pound titles made up for the dreariness of Hopkins-Wright and the frustration of Amonsot-Katsidis. Donaire is now a name that Filipino boxing fans can lump with the likes of Manny Pacquiao and Boom-Boom Bautista, another two-fisted fighter you can root for and not feel too scared he might lose because he knows his craft like Pacman and Boom-Boom do.

Donaire’s left-hook that landed on the lower part of Darchinyan’s jaw was a thing of lethal beauty, a Tomahawk sea-launched cruise missile taking out an Iraqi bunker from miles away. You know it's destructive but you just have to admire it. As Darchinyan stepped in, faked a right jab, his right hand near Donaire’s head, his left hand winded up for an uppercut, Donaire had already winded up for his own left-hook counter. Just like a smart bomb, at the exact moment that Darchinyan had presented himself as a target, Donaire lit the fuse of his left fist and detonated it on Darchinyan’s jaw. BLAM!

Donaire had positioned himself so perfectly that his left foot was between Darchinyan’s feet the moment he hit him. Donaire said pre-fight that he did not respect Darchinyan’s power. After Darchinyan got KO’ed, the Armenian should have developed respect for Donaire’s power. Grudging respect, perhaps, but respect nevertheless.

In the fight game, it’s all about respect, power, winning, money, and all the intangibles and tangibles in between. When Rodel Mayol fights Ulises Solis on Aug. 4, here’s hoping he has learned his lessons not just from his 24 wins but also from his single loss. Who knows, Mayol might do a Donaire and have his name enshrined in the hearts and minds of Pinoy fight fans along with Pacman, Boom-Boom and the Filipino Flash. "Magnum Force" looks good side by side with the Terrible Trio among our current ring heroes.