Preview: Nonito Donaire vs Omar Narvaez at MSG

Championship boxing returns to Madison Square Garden on Saturday night as the “Filipino Flash” Nonito Donaire (left) defends his WBC and WBO bantamweight belts against Argentine super flyweight titlist Omar Narvaez (right).

Widely regarded as one of the sport’s top pound-for-pound fighters, Donaire hasn’t fought since obliterating Fernando Montiel in the second round of their February title fight. A promotional dispute surrounding an attempted move to Golden Boy marred the summer but Donaire has re-united with Top Rank and promised this will be his last fight before moving up in weight.

Narvaez is not quite the draw that Abner Mares or Joseph Agbeko would have been had the Showtime Bantamweight tourney been resolved satisfactorily, but the top-ranked super flyweight has enough experience to pose a challenge should Donaire allow the bright lights of New York to distract him. Nonito sounded confident during a conference call last week, promising to put on a show for local Filipinos.

“It is an honor to be fighting in Madison Square Garden,” Donaire siad. “It is going to be very exciting and our goal is to get out there and entertain and to show the people where I am, like Jack Dempsey did and those old fighters – the old Italian fighters, the old Irish fighters and the old Jewish fighters.”

Both trainer Robert Garcia and promoter Bob Arum were effusive in praising Donaire’s punching power, uncommon even at the highest levels of the sport. Arum called Donaire’s KO of Montiel “scary.”

“I’ve been around a long time and that was one of the most devastating punches I have ever seen,” Arum declared.

“The cannon that Nonito has, not even all of the elite fighters have it,” Garcia said. “He sees the punches. He studies the opponents inside the ring and feels what’s coming and he already knows what he’s going to come back with.”

Donaire said his mindset has changed from being a boxer to a puncher as his power has increased significantly with his development. He acknowledged his size advantage over Narvaez, who has campaigned mostly at junior bantamweight and flyweight, but said his power would be the more meaningful distinction. He also marveled at his opponent’s awkward stance.

“One thing I looked at is the way he stands and where he places his foot. It’s incredible how this guy can fight the way he stands,” Donaire said. “My punches are going to be more devastating. But it’s not about size.”

“[Narvaez] is a helluva fighter,” Garcia added, citing the Argentine’s world titles at two weight classes. “Narvaez’ experience could be a problem for any fighter. He is a veteran, he is tough and he keeps coming.”

But the bet here is that Donaire will be simply too big, too fast and too skilled for the 36-year-old fighting above his natural weight. Narvaez should be crafty enough to resist for a few stanzas but a mid-round stoppage should be expected if Nonito is still in top form.

After that, who knows? The 122-lb division is weak and Donaire would likely make short work of anyone at that weight, though Donaire vs. Jorge Arce is a slugfest we’d love to watch. Featherweight offers more possibilities including rising contender Mikey Garcia, though his brother Robert would likely be against matching his two prize prospects.

Garcia will be featured in the chief support against Mexican veteran Juan Carlos Martinez, thought the bout will likely not be televised by HBO (the show will open with a replay of the Bernard Hopkins-Chad Dawson farce). Long Beach, NY light heavyweight prospect Seanie Monaghan highlights a shallow undercard. We’re making the trek up to the Big Apple in hopes of being ringside; either way we’ll bring you a full report on all the action.