AFTER being idle for nearly 10 months, World Boxing Organization bantamweight champion John Riel Casimero returns to the ring this Saturday (Sunday in Manila), vowing to knock out unbeaten Ghanian challenger Duke Micah when they tangle at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut.
“This is my first time on Showtime so I want to give everyone watching an impressive performance. I’ll go for the knockout,” said Casimero, 31, in a story posted yesterday on the ringnews24.com website written by Anthony Cocks.
“This is an ample opportunity to show the world who I am. I promise I will do my best in this fight. I am incredibly ready to give it my all,” added the Ormoc City pride, who boasts a ring record of 29 wins, 20 by knockout, against four defeats.
“My opponent (Micah) is a mature boxer with good experience. But I’m going to be too strong for him. I believe I’m the best (boxer) at 118 pounds,” stressed the defending champion, who has been training in Las Vegas under MP Promotions chief Sean Gibbons.
Casimero will make his first defense of the WBO bantamweight belt he wrested from erstwhile South African reigning titlist Zolani Tete with a devastating third-round technical knockout on Nov. 30, 2019 at the Birmingham Arena in Birmingham, England.
Micah, 29, was undaunted by the Filipino fighter’s threat, saying: “I’m so grateful for this moment. This is a massive night for me. It all comes down to this, and we are coming to win,”
The Ghanian boxer is undefeated in 24 fights, spiked by 19 KOs, and will figure in his fifth fight in the US.
“I have to stick to my game plan. I expect my opponent to box and move. I’ve prepared for a couple of attacks that I think he will use. I’ve never been more ready for a fight than I am for this one,” explained Micah of what he intends to do against Casimero.
“Casimero is a good boxer, but I’m a different fighter than I’ve been in the past. I’ve improved my game so much, working with Andre Rozier. The fans will see it on Saturday night, and they will become instant fans of my electrifying style,” Micah.
The Casimero-Micah clash is part of the undercard of the Showtime promotion featuring twins Jermell and Jermall Charlo.
Jermell Charlo, who holds the World Boxing Council super welterweight title, will battle in a unification fight the Dominican Republic’s Jeison Rosario, who owns the World Boxing Association and International Boxing Federation super welterweight straps.
In the headliner, Jermall Charlo will stake his WBC middleweight crown against Ukrainian Sergiy Derevyanchenko.
