ESPN Boxing

With his penchant for big knockouts, Darnell Wilson had earned the nickname "Ding-A-Ling Man" during his early rise on the Maryland club fight circuit.

Never, however, was that moniker more appropriate than it was June 29 in Staten Island, N.Y., where Wilson, an emerging top-10 cruiserweight contender, absolutely annihilated Emmanuel Nwodo with one of the most titanic knockouts in recent memory.

It was certainly one of the greatest knockouts in the history of ESPN2's "Friday Night Fights" and it was the easy pick as the 2007 ESPN.com Knockout of the Year.

Wilson essentially predicted what would happen in his pre-fight interview.

"I know he can't take my shot. There's no way in hell he can take my punch," Wilson said. "I know he can't. And once I hurt him, I'm gonna go full [into] sixth gear to put him out."

The words were prophetic.

Few knockouts come close to the devastation that Wilson inflicted on Nwodo with a minute to go in the 11th round of their give-and-take bout.

Both men were cut. Wilson had knocked Nwodo down in the third round. Nwodo dominated the middle rounds and Wilson scored another knockdown in the 10th. It all set the stage for the violent conclusion.

Wilson visibly hurt Nwodo with a right hand about a minute into the 11th round and spent the next minute battering him around the ring. Somehow, Nwodo managed to stay on his feet, but he was badly off balance and you could sense the end coming as Wilson, in his so-called sixth gear, chased him down for the finish.

Rafael's KOs of the Year
Year	Fight
2007	Darnell Wilson KO11 Emmanuel Nwodo
2006	Calvin Brock KO6 Zuri Lawrence
2005	Allan Green KO1 Jaidon Codrington
2004	Antonio Tarver KO2 Roy Jones Jr.
2003	Rocky Juarez KO10 Antonio "Chelo" Diaz
2002	Roy Jones KO7 Glenn Kelly
2001	Lennox Lewis KO4 Hasim Rahman
2000	Lennox Lewis TKO2 Frans Botha

Finally, with Nwodo (21-4, 17 KOs) pinned against the ropes, Wilson (22-5-3, 19 KOs) unleashed a left hook for the ages that creamed Nwodo flush on the chin.

"Ohhhhhhhhhh, a left hook like you cannot believe," ESPN's Joe Tessitore shrieked. "Oh my! Oh my, this fight is over!"

Nwodo had dropped like a rock, his legs pinned underneath him, and then fell to the side. He was out cold in a nauseating scene.

"When the power of lightning strikes from the sky, it is devastating," ESPN analyst Teddy Atlas said. "When the power of a left hook like that strikes cleanly, it is scary."

Added Tessitore, "He took as big of a left hook as I have ever seen in all the fights I have ever broadcast [from] ringside. It was a massive, massive shot."

Nwodo was down for several minutes as he received medical attention before finally leaving the ring under his own power.

"When it first happened, I was a little scared for Nwodo," recalled Dino Duva, Wilson's promoter. "It was scary how he went down. A tremendous knockout. It was really dramatic. But that's the kind of power the 'Ding-A-Ling Man' has."

Knockouts get no more brutal than this one.

As Tessitore was buttoning up the broadcast from ringside, he said, "It's in the clubhouse as knockout of the year, leading the way by far."

It was a lead that was never relinquished.

Other sweet shots:

Nonito Donaire TKO5 Vic Darchinyan (July 7 at Bridgeport, Conn.)

[+] Enlarge Fightwireimages.comNormally the aggressor, Vic Darchinyan, left, couldn't have imagined Nonito Donaire would take the fight to him -- and knock him out. Darchinyan, the brash, heavy-handed flyweight titlist, was supposed to be the one with the one-punch power in this matchup. Instead, Donaire turned the tables with a stunning one-punch demolition in one of the upsets of the year. Darchinyan had never been down or hurt in his career, but Donaire leveled him with a perfect counter-left hook to the face. Darchinyan somehow made it to his feet, but staggered badly across the ring before collapsing into the ropes and falling down. "Ohhhh! Look out," Showtime's Steve Albert intoned. "Darchinyan down for the first time! Struggling to get to his feet! In terrible shape! It's all over, its all over! Nonito Donaire has pulled the monstrous upset in emphatic fashion!" Darchinyan was down for several minutes, his aura of invincibility stripped away along with his title. Moments later, during a replay, Albert added, "A vicious left hand. What a knockout for Nonito Donaire. That may go down as one of the knockouts of the year." Yup.

Michael Sprott KO3 Audley Harrison (Feb. 17 at London)

[+] Enlarge AP Photo/Simon DawsoDon't bother counting, ref: Audley Harrison is down, and he's not getting up. Never was the saying "the bigger they are, the harder they fall" any truer than with this huge knockout. Sprott, who had been knocked down by the 2000 British Olympic super heavyweight gold medalist in the first round, rallied for a spectacular one-punch knockout. He missed with a right hand but followed with a smashing roundhouse left hook that hammered the point of Harrison's fragile chin near the end of the round. Harrison, all 6-foot-5, 254 pounds of him, dropped face first and the fight was over, as was Harrison's career as a fighter to be taken seriously. The referee, Ian John Lewis, could have counted to 100.

Kelly Pavlik TKO7 Jermain Taylor (Sept. 29 at Atlantic City, N.J.)

Al Bello/Getty ImagesKelly Pavlik dethroned Jermain Taylor, became middleweight champion and silenced his critics -- all on the same night. The world middleweight championship changed hands on this stunning knockout. After surviving a rough knockdown in the second round, Pavlik stormed back. He's a great finisher, so when he hurt Taylor with a straight right hand, he didn't let the moment get away from him like Taylor did in the second round. Pavlik landed a flurry of about a dozen unanswered blows, including two brutal uppercuts that dropped Taylor to his backside in the corner, his head slumping forward. Referee Steve Smoger didn't bother to count as Taylor was barely conscious when he went down in a dramatic conclusion to a terrific fight.

Andy Lee KO3 Carl Daniels (March 16 at New York)

[+] Enlarge Ed Mulholland/FightWireImages.comAndy Lee was in celebration mode even before Carl Daniels touched the canvas. Lee, one of boxing's elite middleweight prospects, was in his eighth pro fight and facing his first former titleholder when he scored this frightening knockout. Long past his prime or not, Daniels had never been destroyed like this. Lee caught him with a perfect right hook and he knew instantly that Daniels was gone. As Daniels froze and then began to fall like a tree, Lee simply turned away and raised his fist in triumph. Daniels was unconscious even before he slammed into the canvas.

Kelly Pavlik KO8 Jose Luis Zertuche (Jan. 27 at Anaheim, Calif.)

[+] Enlarge Craig Bennett/Fight Wire ImagesKelly Pavlik, left, and Jose Luis Zertuche fought on even terms -- until a Pavlik power shot disconnected Zertuche from his senses in the eighth round. Pavlik is known as one of the hardest hitters in the business and knockouts like this one are why. Two fights before he drilled Jermain Taylor to win the middleweight championship, Pavlik dusted Zertuche for this memorable knockout. It had been an all-action fight through seven rounds and Pavlik was in command when he blasted Zertuche with a right hand to the face that knocked him unconscious while he was still standing. Pavlik followed with another brutal right hand and a textbook follow-up left hand caught Zertuche's shoulder as he was falling to the canvas. HBO's excited Fran Charles was succinct in calling the action: "Zertuche to sleep with a right hand! And [referee] Raul Caiz just waves it off!"

Jorge Linares KO8 Gamaliel Diaz (Dec. 15 at Cancun, Mexico)

When you hear boxing insiders talk about Linares, the extraordinarily talented 22-year-old featherweight titleholder, most of the focus is on his superb skills and technique. But make no mistake -- he can also crack. In his first defense, Linares was wearing down Diaz and had clipped him with some hard shots when he stepped to the side and unleashed a full-leverage right hand. It crushed Diaz flush on the chin and knocked him out cold and spread eagle in the center of the ring, prompting immediate medical attention.

Ricky Hatton KO4 Jose Luis Castillo (June 23 at Las Vegas)

[+] Enlarge Ethan Miller/Getty ImagesJose Luis Castillo wasn't looking too good after eating a left hook to the liver. Throughout his career, Hatton, the junior welterweight champion, had a reputation as a brutal body puncher. Castillo sure found out that it was no joke. Hatton was in command when he landed a thudding shot to Castillo's body. Castillo spun around and finally dropped to a knee on a delayed reaction to the searing pain. He was virtually paralyzed as referee Joe Cortez counted him out. "The perfect left hook to the liver ends the fight," exclaimed HBO's Jim Lampley.

Floyd Mayweather TKO10 Ricky Hatton (Dec. 8 at Las Vegas)

[+] Enlarge Al Bello/Getty ImagesA perfectly timed left hook from Floyd Mayweather had Ricky Hatton seeing stars. Six months after dishing out a one-punch knockout to Castillo, Hatton was on the receiving end of a pretty KO from Mayweather, who isn't known as a big puncher. But don't tell that to Hatton, who was trailing badly in the 10th when Mayweather uncorked a left hook that nailed Hatton with such force that he flew into the ring post head-first like a pro wrestler before falling to the mat. Moments later, Mayweather landed another left hook that sent Hatton staggering backwards and down again, where he came to rest flat on his back with his head squarely in the center of the star symbol of fight sponsor Rockstar Energy Drink. Surely, Hatton was seeing stars.

Arthur Abraham KO11 Khoren Gevor (Aug. 18 at Berlin)

[+] Enlarge Martin Rose/Getty Images"King" Artur Abraham gave Khoren Gevor a royal beatdown. Abraham won this all-German battle with a sensational one-punch knockout to retain his middleweight belt. Although it looked effortless, the left hook Abraham landed to Gevor's jaw was destructive. Gevor's head swiveled and his eyes rolled back as he dropped to the mat like he was a bag of rocks that had been dumped off a highway overpass. He was out cold as he landed on his knees and then slowly fell over onto his back with his legs tucked underneath him.

Kermit Cintron KO2 Walter Matthysse (July 14 at Atlantic City, N.J.)

In his first welterweight title defense, Cintron racked up his 26th knockout in 28 wins, and this might have been the most punishing off all of those stoppages. Cintron scored three knockdowns in all during the carnage, but the final one was tremendous. With Matthysse still groggy when the second round began, Cintron unleashed one of the sweetest four-punch combinations -- right, right uppercut, left, right -- you'll ever lay eyes on 29 seconds into the round. Every punch connected as Cintron pounded Matthysse to the mat, where he spent several minutes out cold with medical personnel hovering over him.

Alfonso Gomez TKO7 Arturo Gatti (July 14 at Atlantic City, N.J.)

[+] Enlarge AP Photo/Tim LarsenArturo Gatti was left to scrape himself off the canvas after being lambasted by Alfonso Gomez. Gomez, a star of the first season of "The Contender," sent Gatti into retirement with this blistering knockout. Gatti, who had authored so many legendary comebacks, was being punished by Gomez but trying to mount one of his hallmark rallies. It wasn't to be. Gomez battered Gatti around the ring, landing upwards of 30 blows, while referee Randy Neumann was oblivious. Finally, Gomez put Gatti out of his misery by landing one final, steaming right to the face that obliterated him against the ropes.

Andres Ledesma KO5 Gary Stark Jr. (May 2 at New York)

[+] Enlarge Emily Harney/Fight Wire Images Gary Stark was starched in a brutal upset against Andres Ledesma. Stark, a New York prospect, was looking to rebound from a controversial decision loss to Mike Oliver and Ledesma, who had lost four in a row, was supposed to be easy pickings. Not quite. Instead, Ledesma, out of nowhere, caught Stark with a sweeping right hand on the chin, a shot Stark never saw. The junior featherweight went down to a knee before he fell backwards out cold. As referee Steve Willis administered the count, color commentator Brian Adams said it best: "Don't count! Why bother to count! Get the doctor in there!"

Ulises Solis TKO8 Rodel Mayol (Aug. 4 at Rosemont, Ill.)
Solis defended his junior flyweight title four times in 2007, winning each defense by knockout. But none was as destructive as this one-punch beauty, something that is rare for the little weight divisions. Solis touched Mayol with a left jab and then smoked him with a crushing right hand to the chin. Mayol fell forward, hitting the canvas face first with his hands pinned under him.

Daniel Ponce De Leon TKO1 Rey Bautista (Aug. 11 at Sacramento)

It's not a knockout of the year roundup without Ponce De Leon, one of boxing's most explosive punchers, who blew away Bautista in this mandatory junior featherweight title defense. First, Ponce De Leon dropped Bautista with a smashing right-left combination that sent the Filipino into the ropes on spaghetti legs and down. He survived, but only until Ponce De Leon detonated a pair of left hands on his chin seconds later. Referee Jon Schorle didn't bother to count.

Junior Witter KO7 Vivian Harris (Sept. 7 at Yorkshire, England)

[+] Enlarge John Gichigi/Getty ImagesSomebody get Vivian Harris a pillow: Junior Witter unleashed a head-rattling left-right combination to put Harris to sleep. Witter's game is predicated on skills and defense but his power is underrated, although probably not by Harris after absorbing this devastating knockout. Defending his junior welterweight title on home soil, Witter was in control when he landed a short left hook and a window-dressing right hand that left Harris on his back in a corner. A dazed Harris pulled himself toward the bottom rope, where he rested his head sideways while taking the count after the pulverizing punch.

Darling Jimenez KO3 Mike Anchondo (April 27 at Washington)

Jimenez appeared on his way to a second-round knockout after dropping Anchondo in their lightweight bout. But the round was accidentally stopped after two minutes instead of three and Anchondo, a former junior lightweight titleholder, got a reprieve. But only briefly. In the next round, Jimenez landed a picturesque left hook that knocked Anchondo in the ropes and then face first to the mat in a sensational knockout on "Friday Night Fights."

Gerry Penalosa KO7 Jhonny Gonzalez (Aug. 11 at Sacramento)
Gonzalez was ahead in his bantamweight title defense when Penalosa finally came up with a meaningful punch, a dead-on left hook to the liver. Gonzalez hopped backwards a couple of steps and, with a grimace on his face, went down to all fours. He got to his knees, leaned over the second ring rope but could not move any more as his face contorted with pain throughout referee Pat Russell's count.

Mauricio Pastrana TKO8 Antonio Escalante (Jan. 26 at Cicero, Ill.)

Escalante had emerged as a junior featherweight prospect and was looking to etch the name of a former champion on his résumé. He looked on his way to doing just that after dropping Pastrana in the fifth and eighth rounds. But Pastrana pulled the shocker when later in the eighth, he clipped Escalante with a flush right hand on the chin. Escalante went down face first, his hands stretched out at his sides as if he was skydiving in Telefutura's most spectacular knockout (and one of its biggest upsets).

Victor Ortiz KO1 Maximino Cuevas (June 29 at Camp Verde, Ariz.)

Ortiz's nickname is "Vicious" and this knockout on Telefutura is a prime example of why. The 20-year-old junior welterweight prospect was teeing off on Cuevas with a variety of hard punches, but none harder than the final blow. It was a pinpoint right hand to the chin that dropped Cuevas unconscious in a corner, where he landed on his back. He was partially under the ring ropes on the outter part of the apron and in need of medical attention.

Robert Guerrero TKO1 Martin Honorio (Nov. 3 at Tucson, Ariz.)

[+] Enlarge Chris Cozzone/Fight Wire Images Good morning, Martin Honorio. Guerrero is known as a fast starter and he was at it again here, blowing away Honorio in just 56 seconds to retain his featherweight belt. Fighting just days after his wife, Casey, was diagnosed with leukemia, Guerrero was in no mood for a long fight. Instead, he wiped Honorio out, blinding him with a right jab and coming behind it with a flush straight left that floored him. Honorio struggled to his feet, but could not gain his composure as he jogged off balance across the ring and into the ropes as the fight was called off.

Still to come: Round and fight of the year

Dan Rafael is the boxing writer for ESPN.com.