More than six months ago, Nonito Donaire suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Naoya Inoue in Tokyo, Japan. After being knocked out in the second round by Inoue, many thought Donaire may retire at the age of 40 with a legendary resumé intact. However, Donaire has other ideas for the future of his career. In a recent interview with DAZN, he indicated that he’d like to fight for the 115-pound titles held by Juan Francisco Estrada and Fernando Martinez.
“I want to win [a championship in a] fifth division. I want to challenge Juan Francisco Estrada. and even Marcos Maidana’s fighter, Fernando Martinez,” Donaire explained.
Donaire is not a stranger to the super flyweight division. In 2009, he beat Rafael Concepción to win the interim WBA Super Flyweight Championship. Then, he knocked out Manuel Vargas and Hernán Márquez to defend the interim title before entering the bantamweight division.
Nearly 15 years removed from his super flyweight stint, the division looks a bit different. Kazuto Ioka holds the WBO title, Fernando Martinez has the IBF title, Joshua Franco holds the WBA title and Juan Francisco Estrada holds The Ring title. Not to be forgotten, Estrada holds the WBC’s “franchise” title while the “regular” title remains vacant.
