Nonito Donaire Received The Hardest Punch Of Career From Naoya Inoue

After Tuesday’s fight in Japan, Nonito Donaire (42-7, 28 KOs) was quick to pay tribute to both his opponent and referee. The match was stopped in the second round of the three-belt unification bout.

The Filipino professional boxer conducted a live stream at the end of the fight, where he said that the punch he took from Naoya Inoue (23-0, 20 KOs) in the first round was one of the hardest that he had ever received in his career.

The 39-year-old also thanked the referee Michael Griffin for ensuring a stoppage in the second round. “I was trying to cover the punch with a hook or something but ended up failing horribly. I didn’t see the punch coming at all,” Donaire stated.

“The only thing I remember within those 15 to 20 seconds was that the referee was counting me, and I got up. I turned around and Rachel was like “put your hands up or you will be counted out”. Thankfully, I put my hands up at the right time,” Donaire elaborated.

“When I went to the corner, I still had no idea what he had hit me with. They said that it was a 1-2 punch. I managed to get back into my senses very quickly after that. I didn’t know what had actually happened,

“This was easily the hardest punch that I had ever received in my professional career. I went completely blank. I was saved by the referee. The punches that hurt you the most are the ones that you don’t see coming,” Donair concluded.