While he has said that he is comfortable at 112 pounds, Nonito "The Filipino Flash" Donaire has said that he would want to step up to the 115-lb division to face Mexican warrior Jorge Arce should they become successful in their respective outings Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Resort Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

Donaire, who is scheduled to fight Moruti Mthalane of South Africa at 112, said that he hopes to face bigger fighters next time. These include Arce, WBO super flyweight champ Fernando Montiel, WBC/WBA champ Cristian Mijares and Vic Darchinyan, the IBF super flyweight king.

Incidentally, Donaire defeated Darchinyan in his 2007 debut in the US. Darchinyan is also seeing action on Saturday against Mijares at the Home Depot Center in Carson , California .

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum said should both Donaire and Arce win, he plans a super flyweight showdown between the two of them in Manila early next year.

According to Arum, Donaire is open to the idea. “That would be great. I want to fight somebody really big,”  he was quoted as saying.

WBC ring physician Dr. Allan Recto said he believes the fight against mandatory Mthalane will be Donaire’s last fight at 112. He is likely to move up to fight the bigger and better known fighters at 115, said Recto, who watched Donaire at practice.

Donaire said he is prepared to face the cocky Darchinyan whom he knocked out with a perfectly-timed left hook on July 7, 2007 to win the IBF/IBO flyweight titles. He, however, said that he expects the result to be the same.

" [Darchinyan] can't accept what I did to him. I took everything away from him that night,” Donaire said.

The Filipino said he’ll fight Darchinyan if his promoter, Arum, will make it happen.

Donaire, meanwhile, conceded that Mthalane is a compact little fighter who is always in great shape and tough.

He, however, said his opponent is “one dimensional”. "I know my punches. I know I will take him out,” he said. Ronnie Nathanielsz