Yes, Filipino sports fans. Nonito Donaire IS the next great Filipino fighter after Manny Pacquiao. He proved this again yesterday after demolishing Mexican Jorge Arce.

While Pacman has promised to come back better than ever after his surprise knockout loss to Juan Manuel Marquez earlier this month, it’s become quite clear that his best days are now behind him.

Pacman may come back for a fifth encounter with Marquez, and he may even exact sweet revenge by soundly defeating the Mexican legend the next time they meet. If there’s a next time, that is.

Marquez has already said that he will retire after the greatest win of his long career. At 39, he may well do as he says. He does not need any more money, and there’s no better way to exit than with a bang.

The only way that he will have a fifth match with the Filipino is if the prize money is big enough. His camp will probably demand a bigger share of the purse as a primary condition for Pacquiao-Marquez V. Or should it be called Marquez-Pacquiao V?

In their last fight, Pacman reportedly earned $20 million before taxes, while Marquez would only receive about a third of that princely sum.

JMM’s camp can ask for a reversal of purses, and Manny Pacquiao will have to decide if he is willing to again enter the ring against his latest tormentor for a pittance of what he earned the last time.

Enter Nonito Donaire, whom boxing experts have long considered one of the sport’s pound-for-pound kings, right behind Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao. The guy has won 30 fights in a row. Only Mayweather has a better record.

At age 30, he is where Pacman was a few years ago, when the Pambansang Kamao seemed practically invincible.

The only problem with the prizefighter called The Filipino Flash is that he is not quite as likeable as Pacquiao. Smiles do not come easily for Donaire. He does not sing and he does not have political ambitions, thank God.

Technically, he is a brilliant boxer. He has Pacman’s combination of speed and strength, and the fact that he has been unbeaten for so long says a lot about his skills. He does not shrink from the top boxes in his weight class either. His last four victims have all been past or incumbent champions.

If Donaire and Pacquiao were in the same weight class, I daresay that the former could defeat the latter, given his scientific mastery of the sweet sport.

It’s a shame that none of Donaire’s fights have been shown live on pay-per-view here in the Philippines. The man is already a big attraction in the sport. Unfortunately for him, he has always been fighting under the shadow of Pacman.

Not anymore. The way he destroyed four-time champion Arce tells us that he is among the best of the best.

We do not know how long this Flash can maintain his peak form. For our all our sakes, we hope that he can remain on top for a few more years, at least until the next big thing comes along.

And who would that next ring idol be?

He’s just starting out, but the son of former champ Dodie Boy Penalosa fought and won in the undercard of the Pacquiao-Marquez battle. He’s also the nephew of another ex-champ, Gerry Penalosa. The kid certainly has the pedigree. But for now, with apologies to Pacquiao, it is Nonito Donaire who reigns as the Philippines’ best professional boxer.

Objections overruled.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.