The Filipino Flash and his dad have had issues for over a decade now.
Just days after falling short against Mexico’s Alexandro Santiago in his bid to wrest the WBC bantamweight crown once more, Nonito Donaire Jr. took to Twitter to express his heartbreak over his dad’s prefight prediction that the younger Donaire will get knocked out by the Mexican.
“Wow. Just found out that my DAD was predicting I'd get KOed by Santiago,” wrote Donaire. “That stings differently.”
But that’s not all the former four-division world champion had to say. Donaire Jr. reiterated his initial gripe, then vowed that his own kids will never live through the same thing ever.
“I am breaking generational trauma. And if this process has to hurt, I'll take it to ensure my kids never have to feel what I have felt,” Donaire Jr. wrote in a separate tweet. “Hearing my dad say he's training guys to beat me and teach me a lesson and predict I'm going to get KOed just so he can point and laugh is painful.”
In a third tweet, Donaire Jr. nonetheless shared a message of love to his estranged dad.
“But, I will lead with my heart open and vulnerable and hold a safe space of growth love and understanding so my kids and their kids will NEVER have to feel what I'm feeling,” Donaire Jr. added. “Again, Dad, I wish you nothing but happiness. I hope you find that so your heart will be at peace.”
This, of course, is not the first time father and son have been in conflict, as the two have had a history of butting heads starting with their acrimonious split in 2009 due to personal and professional differences. And, early this year, Donaire Sr. called The Filipino Flash “ungrateful” in a tirade on social media.
The 40-year-old Donaire has now lost back-to-back fights, and is facing an uncertain future.
(GM)