Japanese boxer Naoya Inoue (left) and Filipino bet John Riel Casimero. AFP FILE PHOTOS
MANILA, Philippines—John Riel Casimero finally got his wish.
Casimero, the WBO bantamweight titleholder, said he is scheduled for a long-awaited unification fight against Naoya Inoue later this year.
“Next laban natin, magandang laban ‘to. Naoya Inoue, December 11,” said a beaming Casimero on Monday in 12-second video on his YouTube channel.
(Our next fight is going to be a good one. Naoya Inoue, December 11.)
The Filipino power puncher has been clamoring for a clash with Inoue ever since their bout scheduled back in April 2020 was scrapped due to the pandemic.
Both camps have failed to come to terms for a bout since the postponement with Casimero even claiming that Inoue is avoiding him.
The two went on to fight other names instead with Casimero (31-4, 21 KOs) successfully retaining his crown by disposing of Duke Micah in three rounds in September last year and then coming away with a split decision win over Guillermo Rigondeaux earlier this month.
Inoue (21-0, 18 KOs), on the other hand, scored a pair of knockouts against Jason Moloney last October and Filipino Michael Dasmariñas in June to retain his WBA (Super) and IBF belts.