In Top Rank Promotion’s Victory at the Venetian held in Macau, China Saturday night, “the Filipino Flash” scored his second consecutive second round knockout. Nonito Donaire Jr. (35-3, 23KO) defeated French boxer Anthony Settoul (20-4) in their super bantamweight feature bout.
Right from the opening bell, the former five-division world champion was aggresive in cutting his opponent from all angles and attempting quick combinations. In the early stages of the opening round, the Filipino quickly knocked his opponent down after a straight that landed to the side of the face of his opponent. Then, as Settoul stood up, Donaire landed a huge shot to the body of his opponent that momentarily shut down the body of Settoul. The French boxer was able to recover but was groggy heading to his corner during the interval.
In the second round, Donaire stalked his prey knowing that he cannot let his opponent recover. At the 1:17 mark of the round, the Filipino Flash was able to land a powerful right hook that once again knocked his opponent down. The corner of his Settoul threw in the towel knowing that on this night, the 33 year old Donaire had their number.
In the main event of the evening and a battle of unbeatens, Cesar “El Distinto” Cuenca (47-0, 2KO) defeated young upstart Ik Yang (18-1, 13KO) to win the vacant IBF World super lightweight championship. The veteran Cuenca quickly scored a knockdown on his opponent to open the match in the first round. Yang only gained set his imprint on the match in the fifth round in knocked down Cuenca midway. The Mexican was able to recover and was dominant the rest of the way. In frustration, Yang threw El Distinto down while in a clinch that only made the scorecards worse for the upstart boxer from China. Cuenca defeated Yang by unanimous decision 117-110, 115-110, 116-109.
In other bouts, another undefeated fighter continued his streak as Jose Ramirez rolled past Japanese boxer Ryusei Yoshida. Ramirez outclassed his opponent in three rounds of action. With the win, the former Olympian jumps to 14-0, 12KO while Yoshida falls to 26-8.
#1 IBF super lightweight contender Denis Shafikov also made quick work of his opponent Roy Mukhlis. Shafikov just punished his opponent in the third round that resulted to the stoppage at the 1:14 mark. The victor was originally scheduled to face the champion, Mickey Bey, but the champion refused to face his opponent. As a result, he was stripped of the belt due to not competing in a mandatory championship match.
Finally, Chinese upstart Rex Tso continues to make waves in winning his tenth KO victory. This time it was against Thai boxer Khunkhiri Wor Wisaruth (21-12-1). The fight was a crowdpleaser as both men exchanged fists and fire for the majority of the bout. Tso was able to gain the upperhand in the exchange at the fourth round and the referee had no other recourse but to end the bout at the 2:55 mark.
Top Rank Boxing’s Victory at Venetian Results
July 18, 2015 – Cotai Arena, Macau, China
Super bantamweight bout (10 rounds): Nonito Donaire def. Anthony Settoul via TKO2 (1:17)
IBF World super lightweight championship: Cesar Rene Cuenca def. Ik Yang via UD (117-110, 115-110, 116-109) to win the championship
Welterweight bout (8 rounds): Jose Carlo Ramirez def. Ryusei Yoshida via TKO3
Super lightweight bout (10 rounds): Denis Shafikov def. Roy Mukhlis via TKO3 (1:14)
Super bantamweight bout (8 rounds): Rex Tso def. Khunkhiri Wor Wisaruth via TKO4 (2:55)
Light heavyweight bout (6 rounds): Qu Peng def. Michael Van Nimwegen via UD (58-56, 58-56, 58-56)
Welterweight bout (6 rounds): Kuok Kun Ng def. Phompetch Twins Gym via KO4 (2:02) due to an uppercut
Super middleweight bout (6 rounds): Zulpikar Maimaitiali and Joo Young Kwon ended via technical draw due to an accidental head butt
