Nietes out to face Zou for crown

MANILA, Philippines - It’s likely that the longest-reigning Filipino world champion Donnie Nietes will face two-time Olympic gold medalist Zou Shiming for the vacant WBO flyweight crown but to seal the deal, the Chinese star has to overcome Thailand’s Kwanpichit Onesongchai Gym in an eliminator at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas on Nov. 5.

Nietes, 34, made his debut in the flyweight division in Carson, California, last month and outpointed Mexico’s ex-WBC lightflyweight ruler Edgar Sosa. A former world minimumweight and lightflyweight champion, Nietes couldn’t put Sosa down despite staggering him repeatedly. There was speculation that Nietes may not be able to bring up his power to the 112-pound class considering Sosa was never in real danger of taking a count.

But ALA Boxing owner Tony Aldeguer dismissed the speculation. “Donnie’s a smart fighter,” said Aldeguer. “He wanted to test himself going 12 rounds in his first fight as a flyweight. I think Donnie could’ve knocked out Sosa as early as the second round but what would’ve been the point? It was more important for Donnie to feel comfortable at this new weight class.”

Aldeguer said Nietes’ next fight will be against either Zou or Kwanpichit for the WBO throne vacated by Mexico’s Juan Francisco Estrada. “No more tune-up for Donnie,” said Aldeguer. “His next fight will be for the title. Donnie was all set to challenge Estrada but the fight never happened. Estrada held out for a big purse in Japan. In the end, Estrada never got to fight in Japan and ended up relinquishing the title to go to superflyweight. Estrada didn’t fight for over a year.”

It’s possible that Estrada didn’t relish the prospect of meeting Nietes. With Estrada abdicating, the WBO flyweight crown is now up for grabs. Nietes, who hasn’t lost in his last 31 fights dating back to 2004, is the WBO No. 1 flyweight contender and gets first crack at the throne.

Zou, 35, has an 8-1 record, with 2 KOs, compared to Nietes’ mark of 39-1-4, with 22 KOs. They’ve sparred together at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles but they never gave it their all, realizing that someday, they could square off for the title. In 2014, Zou outpointed Kwanpichit, scoring three knockdowns in the process so he’s expected to repeat over the Thai dead-ringer for Manny Pacquiao.

Boxing trainer Freddie Roach’s chief assistant Marvin Somodio will be in Zou’s corner against Kwanpichit in the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao-Jessie Vargas duel for the WBO welterweight title.

Somodio stayed in Manila for a weekend recently and had to rush back to Los Angeles for Zou’s training. “Right now, I’m training Zou,” he said. “Kwanpichit is called mini-Manny by Bob Arum because he really looks like Manny. I think in the rematch, Zou can put Kwanpichit out for good. When he first came to Wild Card, Zou would get off his feet to punch. It took away some of his power because he threw punches while he was in the air. But we’ve fixed that. His feet are now planted on the canvas when he throws a punch to generate maximum power.” Asked for his prediction on a likely Nietes-Zou fight, Somodio said he’s picking the fighter who trains at Wild Card.

Somodio described Nietes as a hunter in the ring. “Donnie’s very patient,” he said. “He’s experienced. He rarely takes chances. He’s always looking for an opening and he’s not careless. He’s definitely a world-class fighter. He reminds you of playing piso-piso. Zou’s advantage is he’s hard to hit. He has basic amateur skills. If his fight against Donnie goes 12 rounds, Zou has a chance to win on points. That would be the only way for him to beat Donnie because I don’t think he can score a knockout.”

Roach himself said Nietes will be tough to beat because he’s a fundamentally sound technician. He declined to pick a winner. In the event Zou takes on Nietes, Roach and Somodio will be in the Chinese corner.

Aldeguer said he doesn’t expect the Nietes-Zou fight to be held in the Philippines. “I don’t think we can bid for it,” he said. “It might be held in the US. This will be a big opportunity for Donnie to showcase his skills before a large US audience. Donnie couldn’t care less where the fight is held. He’s fought and won in Mexico so he’s used to fighting on foreign soil.” There’s a possibility that the fight could be held in China where Zou is a national hero. Because of China’s clout in terms of business and promotional backing, it wouldn’t be far-fetched to stage the bout in a big Chinese city.