Does Nonito Donaire Want to Fight Manny Pacquiao?

Manny Pacquiao and Nonito Donaire are generally considered to be among the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world. While their careers are obviously on different trajectories right now, the success that both have experienced over the past few years coupled with the love they get from their Filipino fans has led many to wonder: could these two fight at some point?

Donaire is coming off a dominant victory over Toshiaki Nishioka; Pacquiao, once he squares off against Juan Manuel Marquez this November, doesn’t have any specific opponents in mind for the coming year. Is this potential Dream Match doable?

Of course not.

During a recent interview, Donaire explained why the prospect of him and Pacquiao squaring off is ludicrous.

"He's like five divisions higher than I am," Donaire said (via ABS-CBN).

Beyond the physical disqualifier, there is also a certain respect factor at work.

"As a fighter, we are not afraid to fight anyone. But we are friends, and it has to be mutually agreed. But we don't seek for it, and it's not in my head," Donaire emphasized.

Frankly, The Filipino Flash is just honored to be a mentioned in the same breath.

"That's another step to where I want to be. You're being compared to one of the top guys, one of the top guys in history," he said. "That means I'm doing something good.”

Fantasy dream matches aside, a lot of people would love to see Donaire take on Jorge Arce next. It remains to be seen if the match will actually get put together, though. As far as Pacquiao goes, once he’s done with Marquez – Floyd Mayweather Jr. is the obvious choice. If that doesn’t work out, then Brandon Rios figures to be a reliable fallback option.


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