Nonito Donaire falls to Japanese champion via split decision

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Nonito Donaire failed in his bid to win another world title after losing to Japan’s Seiya Tsutsumi during their World Boxing Association (WBA) bantamweight clash on Dec. 17, 2025, in Tokyo, Japan.

The Filipino boxing superstar suffered a stunning split decision loss, while Tsutsumi retained his WBA 118-pound championship belt.

After the official match ended, Donaire was confident he had pulled off the win in front of the defending champion’s home crowd, raising his hands as the ring announcer began reading the post-fight decision.

However, the entire Donaire camp was in disbelief as two of the ringside judges scored the bout in favor of the home bet—117-111 and 115-113—while Robert Hoyle, the lone judge who gave it to the Filipino, tallied 116-112.

Donaire’s quest to defy Father Time was off to a strong start as he controlled the ring action with stiff and precise left hook punches.

Aside from throwing his signature hooks, Donaire also won the early battle of the power punches, edging the Japanese fighter in the straight counter department.

All hell broke loose in the final 22 seconds of the fourth round, when Donaire nearly floored Tsutsumi with another left hook set up by a big right uppercut.

Due to the vicious impact, the reigning bantamweight champion nearly kissed the canvas but was able to regain his balance and stand to avoid another haymaker.

Fortunately for Tsutsumi, the bell rang just in time, as he could barely breathe and walked wobbly to his corner. Donaire smelled blood inside the final five seconds of the round and could’ve knocked the Japanese down, but his two-punch combination missed.

Donaire tried to amp up the pressure in the following round as he maintained his pace, but Tsutsumi rekindled his punching rhythm and began landing a barrage of jabs.

Little did Donaire know that the Japanese fighter would remain consistent until the final round, outboxing the Filipino living legend in the jab department, backed by much-improved footwork to avoid the kind of fireworks he faced in the fourth round.

With the come-from-behind win, Tsutsumi improved his pro boxing record to 13 wins, eight by knockout, with no losses, while Donaire fell to 43 wins, 28 by knockout, and nine losses.