Lights, Camera, Action: Nonito Donaire Embraces Celebrity & Stardom

Unified bantamweight champion Nonito Donaire was all smiles this past Saturday as he showed off his boxing skills to media and fans during a public workout in New York. Donaire (26-1, 18 KOs) took the city by storm as he prepares to tackle undefeated contender Omar Narvaez (35-0, 19 KOs) in the world famous Madison Square Garden on October 22.

Since his explosive second round knockout over fellow bantamweight champion Fernando Montiel back in February, Donaire has burst into elite boxing territory as he was catapulted in the upper echelon of pound for pound lists across the globe. Fans who never before heard of the upcoming power puncher now took notice of him and he started to make headlines regularly.

A not so mute point is that Donaire is of a Filipino background, the same as the consensus number one boxer in world Manny Pacquiao. Comparisons to the “Pacman” were inevitable after he left a big dent on Montiel’s face following their matchup, but it is clear that Donaire is nowhere near the same level of popularity Manny is at right now. He is however slowly heading in that direction, and it is no secret he is relishing every second of his climb to the top.

As Nonito entertained the crowd at the public workout by doing imitations of past and present boxers as well as an imitation of “Raging Bull” actor Robert De Niro, his promoter Bob Arum smiled jovially as he confidently predicted to those in attendance that Donaire will definitely be the next big thing in boxing and in the next couple of years will become a legitimate pay per view fighter and superstar. Arum is also the promoter of Pacquiao as well as other box office draws such as Miguel Cotto, Antonio Margarito, Julio Cesar Chavez and Brandon Rios to name a few.

If you look at the major names that draw large audiences in both the past and present, there are two kinds of boxers that become top attractions: Fighters who draw fans with their fists and extraordinary, exciting boxing styles such as Pacquiao and Joe Louis who deliver punches in such brutal fashion that fans can’t help but to watch; and boxers with such glowing and controversial, intriguing personalities to go along with ring skills such as Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Muhammad Ali who fans want to watch just to see if they will back up their boastful words and to see what they will say and do after the fight.

Nonito is a fighter with astonishing KO power that fans will crave to see in the ring. He has knocked out 10 of his last 12 opponents and as long as he continues to put people down on the canvas he will rise in popularity. His brutal hook to Montiel will likely go down as knockout of the year for 2011 (unless Pacquiao can do something ungodly to Marquez). If Donaire continues to bring that type of firepower to fights then Arum’s prediction of pay per view success will come a lot sooner than even Arum is thinking.

Interestingly enough, Donaire has a charismatic personality to go along with his skills in the ring. He comes across as a laid back and jokester of a guy that is always smiling or laughing. Adding to his colourful personality are his youthful looks, a very catchy nickname in the “Filipino Flash” and the fact that he has a beautiful model as his wife that is flanked by his side at almost all times.

When you add these qualities together you can then start to see exactly why both Top Rank (Arum’s organization) and rival promotion Golden Boy fought tooth and nail to have the fighter in their stable. He has all the makings of a budding superstar and where only a handful of boxers get very lucky to have the invaluable identity of being known as a vicious knockout artist or having a one of a kind personality; Nonito appears to have both and that in itself will lead to MAJOR money down the line for him if he remains patient and steadily grows his fan base by winning fights and making himself available to the public on a frequent basis.

This Saturday Nonito will be into the ring with an undefeated fighter in front of a decent sized crowd at the world’s most famous arena. A win will keep him on his road to once in a lifetime fame and riches and if he can score a knockout it will only speed him up on this journey, but the crafty Narvaez will definitely test Donaire’s ring skills and versatility.

Therefore as long as Nonito keeps winning the chips will all fall into place naturally as he has all the tools to become a major force in boxing; and if the “Filipino Flash” can keep winning by knockout then the world will be his and the major stars of the sport will have to make way for the man that can not only punch hard enough to leave craters in your face, but the man that can also light up your day with a wily joke and a big glowing smile.