Nietes’ big splash

Four-division world boxing champion Donnie “Ahas” Nietes is looking for a big splash. Despite all his accomplishments and accolades, the proud son of the small town of Murcia in Negros is still not a mainstream household name outside of the Philippines. The irony of it all is that Nietes has always been willing and able to fight anyone, anywhere, any time. He has had the most title defenses in Mexico. However, those other champions who would make a compelling fight have been clearly ducking him.

On July 3, Nietes did something uncharacteristic. He flew to Thailand hoping to goad World Boxing Council super flyweight champion Srisaket Sor Rungvisai to fight him. In a message to The Star yesterday, Nietes said that there was “no schedule yet” for a unification bout. When asked if the Thai was avoiding him, he simply said he didn’t know.

Nietes came from a dirt-poor upbringing in a first-class municipality of under 82,000 people. They planted rice and sugar cane. In grade school, he followed in the footsteps of his father and uncles and took up boxing for fun. He got hooked.

When he was 19 and a fresh graduate from a two-year college course, he had already dominated inter-barangay, district and regional meets. He had outgrown Murcia, boxing-wise. His uncle, Dan Nietes, a former pro boxer, told him that ALA Gym in Cebu needed a janitor. So Donnie made the boat ride across the pond.

There was only one problem. Tony Aldeguer – and everyone else – thought Nietes was to small (5’3”) and too skinny to be a professional boxer. They needed someone to clean the gym, and someone courageous enough to clean the cages of Aldeguer’s pythons. Nietes, persevered, unmindful of the poison-less snake bites. In 2003, Nietes turned pro, and piled up wins at an astonishing rate. In his career, he only tasted defeat once, a controversial split-decision defeat to an overweight Angky Angkota of Indonesia in 2005. In 2007, Nietes became WBO world minimumweight champion. Even then, the lessons continued. Nietes once broke curfew, and learned that, champ or not, house rules were house rules.

“Yes, I was with Ray “Boom Boom” Bautista,” Donnie laughs. “We went out, and came back a bit past curfew. Sir ALA didn’t let us back into quarters. We were going to sleep under an overpass, but early in the morning, sir ALA let us back in.”

Since then, Nietes has become a beacon for other boxers. Quiet, humble, unassuming, but with a heavyweight resumé. He, Manny Pacquiao and Nonito Donaire Jr. are the only Asians to have become world champions in four weight divisions. Nietes is the longest-reigning Filipino world boxing champion. A statue of him stands in Murcia. And the world’s best boxers are running scared. WBC champ Juan Francisco Estrada has hemmed and hawed. And we all know how Nicaragua’s Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez has been conveniently unavailable. For years.

Nietes deserves a compelling rivalry as an exclamation to a brilliant career. He has surpassed expectations and conducted himself with absolute dignity and class. His battles with Moises Fuentes are awesome spectacles. Is there no one brave enough to risk their belts on him to extend their mutual legend?