Nonito Donaire Jr., knocked down French man Anthony Settoul thrice before scoring a second-round technical knockout victory Saturday night at Cotai Arena in the Venetian Macau.
Donaire slammed Settoul twice in the first round, flooring him once with a right that merited a delayed reaction from Settoul, before downing him again with a left uppercut to the solar plexus.
But Settoul, fighting out of Europe for the first time, managed to beat the count on both occasions in their 10-round non-title fight.
In the second round, Donaire slipped solid right to the face that put Settoul down once again, prompting his corner to throw in the towel.
The 32-year-old Donaire, the 2012 consensus Fighter of the Year, is on a comeback trail after suffering a devastating 6th round knockout at the hands of Jamaican Nicholas Walters last year at SubHub Center in Carson, California.
Also on deck to challenge the fighter known as the “Filipino Flash” is WBA 122lb champ Scott Quigg of United Kingdom.
It was Donaire’s second stint at Cotai Arena at the famed Venetian Hotel which witnessed his controversial technical decision win over South African Simpiwe Vetyeka for the WBA featherweight crown.
And months after that KO loss to Walters, Donaire took his first step back with a second-round stoppage of Brazilian William Prado whom he beat up to submission last March at the Araneta Coliseum.