Guillermo Rigondeaux vs.....

Robert Marroquin... ranked number 43 in the world according to boxrec. Its on the undercard of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr vs Sergio Martinez.

Don't really know what to say about this.... if Rigondeaux wants to be recognised, he needs to fight better fighters. Donaire has been slated in various media outlets for the opposition he has been facing, seems its streets ahead of Rigondeaux's competition. I have said it before, he may have the talent, but he is not proving himself. Whether its Rigondeaux fault or uncle Bob i'm not really sure, but you can't defend this kind of opponent. If he starts fighting people with a name in the division and winning impressively, then I have no qualms. I think I have a fair assessment of the situation...

Is Donaire really ducking him like so many claim?

Shocking really, he could go down as one of the worst wasted talents ever!

Its probably Bob Arum more than him, but fighters do have a say in the matter!

In fairness to Rigondeaux, I don't think there's a very long list of top fighters at 122 lb who want to risk their titles and / or reputations against a remarkably gifted and insanely dangerous operator such as himself, particularly when said operator isn't a particularly big name or draw and therefore can be conveniently side stepped. Rigondeaux has been very vocal in saying he wants to fight the big names at Super-Bantam, and expressed great thanks to Kennedy (his last opponent) simply because he was wondering where his next opponent was coming from.

All of that said, however, I don't for a single second believe that Donaire is running scared here, given his track record. As you touched upon, I think a far more likely scenario is that Arum is trying to keep both men racking up wins and title defences for as long as possible until demand for the fight reaches fever pitch, similar to what he did with Gamboa and Lopez - although that obviously proved to be a bad move!

If I could magically make any single fight right now, I think Donaire-Rigondeaux would be it. I'm not sure that Donaire is fully appreciated; it hasn't seemed to dawn on some that we're not just looking at a legitimate pound for pound fighter here, we're looking at a proper all-time great. He's a sensational little fighter.

Rigondeax is worth the hype though, I truly believe that. The man is so naturally gifted and smooth it's scary. His movement is so fluid, not a single odd-looking jolt in sight. Kennedy did precious little wrong against him, and Rigondeaux's assaults on him were so blinding that it's almost impossible to identify what mistake (if any) Kennedy made for those knockdowns, or what else he could have done to prevent them.

If anyone can solve this puzzle, mind you, it's Donaire, who as I said deserves to be viewed as one of the greats of this era. His footwork is the best in boxing, bar none. Or at least it was up until Bantamweight; so far, he seems every so slightly off colour at Super-Bantam. But I'm mindful that he has been known to fight to the level of his opponent, usually keeping his best for the big night, such as when he wrecked Darchinyan or when he blew Montiel out in two last year.

His hand speed and timing is fantastic. If he and Rigondeaux sqaure off, the technical virtuosity on show will be mouth-watering. Sorry, I'm rambling on here. I really want to see that fight, don't you know....

How about no one will fight him therefore he has to scrape the bottom of barrel. How about Bob won't offer guys good wages to take a severe beating/humiliation because Rigo is not a big money draw. How about he is taking keep busy fights while he waits for the cowards to sign the contracts. HAHAHA!!

I'm baffled that the top man in the division Nishioka gets forgotten each and every time Donaire and Rigondeaux are mentioned, he is the man they should both be gunning for, the one with proven pedigree at the highest level in the division.

Donaire and Rig are massively talented but im not sure either beat Nishioka if he fights at his highest level, an under appreciated fighter who can fight on both the front and back, has almost every punch in the book, has good power and a very good chin.

Nishioka is with out a doubt the number 1 guy in that division. People have made some very valid points about no one wanting to fight Rigondeaux. However he needs to step up the competition, the talent level is there for all to see, he just needs to prove it against the names in the division. Whether or not the politics of boxing keep getting in the way of that remains to be seen....

If Rigondeaux went and convincingly beat Vasquez Jr or beat Nishioka, I would also be jumping on the Rigondeaux band wagon and start calling out Donaire. My favourite boxers are the ones who are entertaining, have skills and fight the best around (Donaire, Marquez, Martinez, Cotto).

I should blindly follow Cleverly since he is Welsh, but I have an objective view of him and agree with everyone that he needs to step up the competition.

I don't think I am being a biased Donaire fan boy??

Rigo is tied to Arum. Arum makes the fights and Rigo does the fighting. If he tries to leave his career will be over. I doubt he has much power over his own affairs. Perhaps this is a tune up for a world title fight.

To be fair Ghosty if I backed Rigo to win against Nishioka I'd be doing it on pure man love alone (or so someon here would have you believe). In all honesty I've never seen Nishioka box, I've heard lots about him though. I'll try and watch a few videos and give a more informed opinion of who I think would win, but you know as well as me, it will be equally as biased!

I rate Nishioka highly, Ghosty, but as a spectacle I'd much prefer to see Donaire-Rigondeaux. Also, I'm not sure I'd agree that Nishioka beats them, although it's not something I'd say with any great conviction. If Donaire, for instance, brought his Bantamweight form up just that extra 4 lb (and I'm sure he can, still) then he beats Nishioka far more often than not, for me. Donaire's performance against Montiel was one of the most incredible I've ever seen, and that's not just because he took his man out early.

I still think Donaire-Rigondeaux would be the cream of the crop title dust up at 122 lb - but I'd settle for Nishioka taking on either of them, don't get me wrong!

Rigondeaux is a world champion now so I dont quite buy that theres nobody out there who will face him.

It may be too soon to arrange the fights with guys like Donaire, Nishioka or Mares but looking at this next guy they have in line it looks a really poor match for a world title affair. Even someone like Steve Molitor would surely not be too much to ask?

To be fair I don't rate Montiel in the slightest. That giant Donaire was always going to give the limited powerful dwarf a drubbing.

It seems to be the Lacy effect with regards to Montiel, MM. Lest we forget, Montiel was the double title holder at Bantam, seen by many as the best at the weight, and was even gracing some people's pound for pound lists before Donaire wiped him out. The bubble has bust since, but it's still a mightily impressive win on Donaire's record, and the sort of performance which not many fighters on the planet could muster.

Montiel was bigger than Donaire come fight night I believe, they were both huge at bantamweight.

Pound for pound Chris I agree that Donaire should have too much for Nishioka but since stepping up to super bantam his form seems to have deserted him somewhat, was lacklustre against both Vasquez and Mathebula. The weight could be a major equaliser for Nishioka who physically stacked up well against Munroe who has to be the biggest of the big at the weight.

Not weight Ghosty......height!!

Supposedly, there is only an inch and a half height difference and a two inch reach between them????

I don't know if it's Montiel's crouching style but he looked tiny in that fight next to Donaire. I don't trust the tape in general.

Montiel looked the physically bigger of the two to me but it was the speed difference that decided that fight as much as the power.

Jesus if this is true it sucks, put him in with a ranked, live, winning opponent. Not some duffer who i would rather see sweep a street or drive a taxi than step in between the sexy, sultry ropes.

This aint no kinky fight, and Rigo is not a spring chicken, put him in with a live wire Arum, you old wart faced hag.

Arum's face looks like a nut-sack, fact.

Whatever, you are argumentive as always. Donaire looked bigger, but the board can make their mind up...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chxmYF4m2xg


p.s I didn't mention why or how donaire won.

Montiel had just come off a great win, which was a destruction of a highly rated champion in Hasegawa in Japan. We should also not forget that Hasegawa had defend his title multiple times before that, usually winning with ease.

I think Montiel is poor from a technical repertoire standpoint. Strong, limited and one dimensional. No amount of he beat this one or that one will change my mind. I base my opinion on observation of ability.

Basically trying to act smart, the biggest sign of a boxers talent is who they can beat, from a technical standpoint Aaron Pryor did everything wrong but he had fabulous attributes that made up for that, too much is made of silky technical skills, it isn't the be all and end all.

Argh there you go again. I'm not talking about Aaron Pryor, I'm talking about Montiel. If i met you, I would punch you in the head untill it was red porridge on the floor. I'm not acting smart in saying that, I am venting the anger i feel toward you. You are a pathetic pedantic person.

P.s I would use a combination of silky skills and brute force to smash you to a pulp! Peace out

I'm prone to instintive burst of anger, followed by immediate remorse, then by an apology. Sorry. Someone said I shouldn't go to bed on an argument so i will send an olive branch in the form of a

Goodnight

Proving a point that there's more to boxing than reading a textbook on how it should be done.

TheMackemMawler wrote:Whatever, you are argumentive as always. Donaire looked bigger, but the board can make their mind up...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chxmYF4m2xg


p.s I didn't mention why or how donaire won.

Donnaire looked like he was in a different weight class altogether.

Thankyou AZ

You can go to sleep now in peace.

(in a manly way of course )

The promoting of Rigondeaux has really been poor. There was no need for him to be fighting real rubbish while in his late 20's with 400 amateur fights behind him. I don't think he learned a damn think up until the Cordoba fight which as it turns out was to soon and he ended up not putting on a great performance despite winning as he went from fighting cans to boarder line world level. He needed to be thrown in at a higher level for a fight or two then on to Cordoba and if he was really pushed by HBO and Goldenboy he would be one of the stars of the sport right now.

The Super Bantamweight division is in a really strange place right now. With Donaire, Rigondeaux, Nishioka and Mares it is arguably the strongest division in boxing at the moment. However Nishioka is the number one guy right now and I'd make the other 3 favourites against him, very slight favourite in the case of Mares. Also Nishioka is the smallest draw out of the top guys so he might find himself in the who needs em category, especially as he could make a load of cash fighting in his native Japan and has no need to travel for big money.

Back to the original article Rigondeaux should be fighting someone better.

To be fair Donaire looked massive in comparison to Montiel.

Would pick Donaire to beat Rigondeaux though. Rigo is ultra talented, however, perhaps it was because he was so good as an amateur but I think he's slightly trapped in his amateur style and is a little one dimensional. He does little other than be tight defensively and set up the left hand, He doesn't use his right for anything really other than feinting or just a distraction to get a straight left in. Everything Rigondeaux does is textbook and he is OH SO GOOD at what he does, but he just seems to me to be one dimensional as he seems unwilling to change anything even when it perhaps isn't working quite so well and could attempt other things, like when he fought Cordoba and Rico Ramos, just the unwillingness to try anything else is slightly puzzling, unless he's set in his ways. Get a feeling Donaire could be the one to unravel the mystery, then again I could be a million miles off...

I didnt realise Nishioka was as old as he is. 36 next week. Ancient by super bantam standards.

Why was Nishioka stripped by the WBC incidentally? Was it just because Sulamain wanted a Mexican champion and couldnt think of any other way to do it?

Supposedly the WBC promised Nishiokas next fight will be for the WBC Diamond title.....

manos de piedra wrote:I didnt realise Nishioka was as old as he is. 36 next week. Ancient by super bantam standards.

Why was Nishioka stripped by the WBC incidentally? Was it just because Sulamain wanted a Mexican champion and couldnt think of any other way to do it?

Supposedly the WBC promised Nishiokas next fight will be for the WBC Diamond title.....

JESUS! That actually makes me sick to my stomach!!!

Inactivity possibly?

Who is the chump.. champion now?

The WBC is sinking without a trace.

Mares fought Morel for the vacated title. Nishioka only fought late last year so would be harsh to strip him for inactivity.

Probably just a repaet of the Chavez/Martinez affair. Get a new Mexican champion in and give the stripped guy a fake title and demand more sanctioning fees.