Filipino · Talibon, Philippines · Born 16 November 1982Nonito Donaire won world titles in four weight classes and became the oldest man ever to win a bantamweight world title at 38.
Nonito Gonzales Donaire Jr. was born on 16 November 1982 in Talibon, Bohol, Philippines, and moved to the United States as a child, developing into one of the finest Filipino boxers in history under the guidance of his father. Nicknamed "The Filipino Flash," he turned professional and built a reputation as one of the sport's most spectacular finishers. Donaire delivered his signature knockout in 2007, stopping the previously dominant Vic Darchinyan with a single right hand to win the IBF/IBO flyweight titles, a result named The Ring magazine's Knockout of the Year. He won a second Knockout of the Year award in 2011 for a similarly dramatic finish, becoming one of the few fighters to win the honour twice. Donaire has held world titles across five weight divisions, from flyweight up to featherweight, winning nine world championships in total from boxing's major sanctioning bodies. He reached a career-high pound-for-pound ranking of third in the world according to The Ring in 2011, and continued competing at a world-class level well into his forties. Donaire has remained one of the most beloved and respected boxers to emerge from the Philippines, a country with a rich boxing tradition, and continues to be recognised as one of the finest technical fighters and biggest punchers ever to compete across boxing's smaller weight classes.
'The Filipino Flash' - four-weight world champion, one-punch KO power
How They Played
Fast, aggressive, technical boxer with exceptional power
Lasting Impact
One of the greatest Filipino boxers and four-division world champion
Career Honours
- BWAA/ESPN/SI/Ring Fighter of the Year 2012
Filipino Athletes