Japanese boxer Naoya Inoue cemented his status as king of the bantamweight category after his victory over Filipino Nonito Donaire on Tuesday.
Undefeated Japanese boxer Naoya Inoue knocked out Filipino Nonito Donaire in the second round on Tuesday to add the WBC world bantamweight title to his WBA and IBF belts.
Inoue, who had already beaten Donaire in 2019, knocked the 39-year-old veteran out at the end of the first round and stopped him for good in the second round to bring his total wins to 23 in as many fights, including 20 by KO.
The first bout between Inoue and Donaire in Saitama, north of Tokyo, was voted Fight of the Year by the Boxing Writers Association of America, with the Japanese fighter having to overcome a fractured eye socket to claim a unanimous victory at the points.
The long-awaited rematch in the same place turned out to be completely different. Inoue lived up to his ‘Monster’ nickname by mercilessly dominating the Filipino.
In the second round, he landed Donaire a left hook that sent him teetering to his feet, before a flurry of punches sent the ‘Filipino Flash’ to the ground and convinced the referee to stop the fight.
Inoue can now hope to become the undisputed world bantamweight champion, with current WBO titleholder, Briton Paul Butler, being the only obstacle left for him.
The 29-year-old Zama native said he wants to become the undisputed champion in the category before the end of the year.
Butler snatched the vacant WBO title from former champion Filipino John Riel Casimero by beating fellow Filipino Jonas Sultan by unanimous decision in April.
Butler was elevated from interim champion to full world champion last month when the WBO stripped Casimero of his title.
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