Emanuel Navarrete stopped Eduardo Nunez before the start of the 11th round to unify the WBO and IBF super-featherweight world titles in Arizona on Saturday night.
The three-division champion won the all-Mexican bout to improve to 40-2-1 (33 KOs), while Nunez fell to 30-2 (28 KOs) in the biggest fight of his career.
A ringside doctor halted the contest ahead of the 11th, awarding Navarrete the IBF title alongside his WBO belt.
“It’s difficult to see your opponent hurting in there, but it’s also really difficult to not continue and go on to win the fight,” Navarrete said. “You never know what might happen in those last rounds. He could catch you with a shot and it could be over. So I needed to continue doing my work.”
Navarrete controlled much of the contest despite Nunez changing styles at times. Navarrete was willing to engage on the inside early, while Nunez landed several body shots as he tried to shift the momentum.
In the ninth round Navarrete surged, landing a series of right hands that left Nunez’s legs unsteady and his eye beginning to close. Blood flowed from Nunez’s right eye in the 10th, and he continued until the ringside doctor stopped the fight.
Navarrete now appears set to face WBO mandatory challenger Charly Suarez next; the two previously fought to a no-contest last May.