Irish foe wary of Donaire's power

MANILA, Philippines – Nonito Donaire Jr.’s upcoming opponent believes the Filipino-American fighter can still pack a punch.

That’s why former champion Carl Frampton vowed to keep his guard up when he locks horns with Donaire on April 21 at the SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

"He's still dangerous. He's definitely a big puncher and it's something I need to be cautious about," Frampton recently told BoxNation.

Donaire and Frampton will engage each other in a 12-round featherweight tussle, with the winner possibly lined up for a title shot. It will be the 35-year-old Donaire’s second bout in the 126-pound division since returning to the weight class late last year.

While moving up in weight generally affects a boxer’s punching power, Frampton said he remains wary of Donaire.

"I always say the last thing to go from a fighter is his punching power. But he's been as low down as super flyweight. I feel I'm the bigger man. I believe he's a puncher but I believe I can punch equally as hard," Frampton continued.

Donaire (38-4, with 24 KOs) seeks to follow up on his comeback victory over Ruben Hernandez in September last year for the WBC silver featherweight title. It was his return bout to the featherweight division, and came right after he lost the WBO super bantamweight diadem to Jessie Magdaleno.

Now, Donaire is in for a tough assignment against Frampton (24-1, with 14 KOs), who once held the IBF and WBA versions of the super bantamweight championship.

"I don't think there's a better fight out there in the division. Any other day this would be a world title fight,” said Frampton.

The Irishman is confident of coming out on top.

"It's a must win for both of us. He's in a similar position to me. The winner of this fight certainly goes on to fight for a world title, no doubt in my mind about it. I want to make sure that's me," Frampton said.