Riku Masuda Stops Nonito Donaire in Eight

Masuda drops Donaire in the seventh before corner stoppage seals bantamweight eliminator victory

Riku Masuda (9-1, 8 KOs) stopped former four-division champion Nonito Donaire (43-10, 28 KOs) in the eighth round of a WBA bantamweight title eliminator Sunday on the U-Next championship card in Japan. Donaire’s corner threw in the towel midway through the round.

Donaire began sharply, controlling the early rounds with his jab and short combinations while holding the center of the ring. Masuda spent much of the opening rounds near the ropes, studying the rhythm and picking his moments to counter.

The fight shifted in the middle rounds. An accidental clash of heads opened a cut on Donaire, and Masuda began pressing forward more aggressively. He stepped inside with straight punches and hooks, forcing the veteran into exchanges.

The decisive moment came late in the seventh round. Masuda finished a right-left combination with a sharp left hand that dropped Donaire. The Filipino legend rose, but his legs were unsteady as he returned to his corner.

Masuda quickly resumed the attack in the eighth, stepping in with combinations that kept Donaire on the defensive. After absorbing several clean shots, Donaire’s corner stopped the fight.

The victory places Masuda firmly in line for a future WBA bantamweight title opportunity.

Other Results

WBO flyweight champion Anthony Olascuaga (12-1, 9 KOs) stopped Jukiya Iimura in the ninth round to retain his title.

Shokichi Iwata reclaimed championship gold with an eighth-round technical decision over Thammanoon Niyomtrong after a worsening cut from an earlier clash of heads forced the bout to be stopped.

Ryusei Matsumoto retained the WBA strawweight title with a clear unanimous decision over Yuni Takada, winning all twelve rounds on the judges’ scorecards.

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