John Riel Casimero calls out champ Naoya Inoue: No one else can beat him but me

Former three-division champion John Riel Casimero has called out the WBC, WBA, and IBF world bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue anew following the latter’s second-round victory over Nonito Donaire Jr. this past Tuesday in Saitama, Japan.

Casimero, 33, was supposed to fight Inoue in April 2020 but the fight was called off at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. He last fought in August against former champion Guillermo Rigondeaux where he emerged victorious by way of split decision.

“There will be a winner and a loser, that is boxing. Donaire did his best to win that fight. No one else can beat Inoue but ‘Angas ng Pinas.’ Do not worry Donaire, we will get even. Filipinos will fight for what happened to Donaire,” Casimero said in Filipino on his Youtube channel.

Casimero, 31-4 with 21 knockouts, also claimed that he currently holds the WBO world bantamweight title which is not the case.

He was supposed to defend his then world title against the then mandatory challenger Paul Butler in December but pulled out of the fight after he suffered from viral gastritis on the day of the weigh-in.

The WBO gave him a pass and had the mandatory title defense moved to April in Liverpool, only for Casimero to violate the British Boxing Board of Control’s prohibition of using a sauna before a fight. The sanctioning body moved to strip him of the title after he failed to defend his belt twice.

“Inoue has three belts, I have the WBO. Naoya Inoue, you are a monster? No. You are no monster, you are a Japanese turtle again! No one else can beat Naoya but John Riel Casimero,” Casimero said.

—JM Siasat/JMB, GMA News