Nonito Donaire named as PBC fighter of the year

Four-division champion Nonito Donaire Jr. is Premier Boxing Champions’ 2021 fighter of the year.

Donaire, who holds a record of 42-6 with 28 knockouts, proved that age is just a number when he stopped Nordine Oubaali last May to claim the WBC world bantamweight at 39 years old.

Seven months later, Donaire made a successful defense of his strap when he defeated his fellow Filipino and previously unbeaten contender Reymart Gaballo also via fourth-round knockout.

“With a combined 47.6% of the votes from our Twitter and YouTube polls, YOUR choice for the Best of PB C2021 FIGHTER OF THE YEAR is... WBC World Bantamweight Champion Nonito Donaire,” PBC announced on Instagram.

Mark Magsayo, meanwhile, won PBC’s knockout of the year recognition for his eighth-round stoppage of Julio Ceja last August.

The win earned him his first shot at a world title as he takes on WBC world featherweight champion Gary Russell Jr. on January 22 at the Borgata Hotel in Atlantic City, USA.

—JMB, GMA News