MANILA, Philippines – In another amazing display of punching power, Jamaican Nicholas Walters knocked out Nonito Donaire Jr. in the sixth round to take the WBA “super” world featherweight title on Sunday at the StubHub Center in Carson, California.
The end came at the 2:59 mark of the sixth round when Walters cracked Donaire with a looping right hand to the head. The Filipino-American managed to beat the mandatory 8-count but was on unsteady legs, resulting in the stoppage.
The heavy-handed Walters earlier decked Donaire in the third round with a right uppercut, but not after struggling in the first two rounds with Donaire’s combination punching.
Donaire, for his part, had moments in the bout, including rocking Walters near the end of the second canto. But Walters’ punching power was just too much, and he became the first fighter to knock down the usually durable Donaire, whose right right eyelid was swollen.
“He [Walters] knocked the [expletive] out of me,” Donaire said after the fight, praising his conqueror.
“He’s an amazing champion. I was at my best, but he came out as tough as I thought,” he added.
The punch stats saw Walters dominating, with 85 of his 284 punches hitting their target. Donaire, in contrast, landed only 40 of 169 blows thrown. The Jamaican also stood out in the power punching department, connecting 41 of 122 power blows compared to Donaire’s 36 of 110.
The loss was the third for Donaire, who dropped to 33-3 (21 KOs). Walters, meanwhile, stretched his unbeaten streak to 25 (21-KOs).
Walter previously destroyed former champion Vic Darchinyan in Macau last May, knocking him down thrice en route to a fifth-round knockout win.