Donnie Nietes vs. Raul Garcia: Fight Time, Date, Live Stream and TV Info

When Donnie Nietes (37-1-4, 21 KOs) steps into the ring against Raul Garcia (38-3-1, 23 KOs) on Saturday night at the University of St. La Salle Coliseum in Bacolod City, Philippines, there are three streaks he will be looking to keep intact.

First and foremost, Nietes is defending his WBO World light flyweight title for the eighth time, having won the strap by earning a decision over Ramon Garcia Hirales—Raul Garcia's twin brother, as it turns out—in October 2010.

The man they call "Ahas" is also looking to keep alive an unbeaten streak that dates back to early in his career, a split-decision loss to Angky Angkotta in 2004 that remains the only blemish on an otherwise sterling career resume. 

Finally, Nietes is 14-0 against Mexican fighters in particular, and he can make it 15-0 with a win over Garcia. 

Nietes vs. Garcia Fight Info

When: Saturday, May 28 at 6 a.m. E.T. (6 p.m. local time)

Where: University of St. La Salle Coliseum, Bacolod City, Philippines

TV: ABS-CBN's Sky Cable, (Philippines, pay-per-view, according to Rappler.com's Ryan Songalia)

Live Stream: TFC.tv (subscription required, region restricted)

Preview, Prediction

After a decision win over Juan Alejo in Southern California for his maiden match on American soil, Nietes is back in the friendly confines of the Philippines, where he has more often than not dominated his opposition. 

Nietes, 34, does well to show up to bouts in tip-top shape, and he can force the issue in the ring or step back and let the fight come to him. He's also plenty good at finishing his challengers early on. Prior to decision wins against Alejo and Francisco Rodriguez Jr., Nietes had a four-stoppage fight streak going. 

In this fight, Nietes might be going for a more defensive, calculating approach, as his opponent Garcia plans to come out swinging in his quest to avenge his brother's loss nearly six years ago. 

“I’m looking at a knockout in the first five rounds against Nietes. If it won’t happen, I’m ready to go as far as 12 rounds,” he said, per SunStar.com's Henry G. Doble.

Garcia's comments could be the usual pre-bout bluster rather than him actually tipping an aggressive strategy, but it might not matter all that much. Nietes feels he has something of a book on Garcia, having already fought and beaten his twin brother.

“His style of fighting is the same as his twin. They have the same offense. The movement of Raul Garcia is the same as Ramon Garcia also. That’s why it’s very familiar to me,” says Nietes, per Songalia. 

Nietes sports a 65.5-inch reach to Garcia's 64, per BoxRec, so he could use that slight advantage to keep his opponent from getting inside early. Garcia, 33, is on a five-bout win streak, but only two of those have come by knockout and all of those opponents have been rather anonymous card-fillers. The last time Rayito fought anyone of note, Pedro Guevara in early 2013, he lost by split decision. 

The La Paz, Mexico, native's southpaw style might give Nietes pause at some point, but the Filipino veteran has seen plenty in his long and illustrious career. 

Look for Nietes to ride an early, desperate push from Garcia before scoring a late-round technical knockout. Should Nietes get past Garcia on Saturday, he has another fight to make against Moises Fuentes before he can perhaps take on boxers in the flyweight ranks, per Songalia:

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The third fight, which was mandated after Fuentes outpointed former Nietes victim Francisco Rodriguez Jr in a December eliminator, will take place September 24 at StubHub Center in Carson, California, with exciting featherweight prospect Mark Magsayo also slated for that card.

Even with two fights lined up for this year, Aldeguer has gotten the ball rolling for a fight which could earn Nietes the greater awareness the reserved ring technician has yet to receive. Aldeguer says he has had “serious” discussions with Estrada’s promoter Zanfer Promotions about making the fight for next year, and had even spoken with HBO about televising it.

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Nietes has long reigned over the light-flyweight division, and a move up to 112 pounds would be good for him and for the flyweight ranks. He will have to do so quickly if he wants to make a run at a title in the weight class that essentially belongs to Roman "Chocolatito" Gonzalez.

Nietes is already in his mid-30s with 298 professional rounds under his belt. Nietes knows how to preserve his body, but a boxer can only take so much before the physical toll becomes too difficult to bear.