John Riel Casimero targets Inoue showdown after Ryo Akaho fight

Former three-division champion John Riel Casimero has his sights set on Japanese pound-for-pound star Naoya Inoue should he get past Ryo Akaho on December 3 at Paradise City in Incheon, South Korea.

Casimero, 31-4 with 21 knockouts as a professional boxer, was supposed to share the ring with the current pound-for-pound no. 2 Inoue in 2020 but the fight was scrapped because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"If I win against Akaho I want Naoya Inoue next as long as he does not run. I respect Akaho because he will fight me, he is not afraid," Casimero said in an interview with A-Sign Boxing.

The 32-year-old Casimero last saw action in August 2021 against former champion Guillermo Rigondeaux where he won via split decision. Earlier this year, the Ormoc native was stripped of his WBO world bantamweight title after he failed to defend it twice against Paul Butler.

Inoue, meanwhile, last fought in a unification last June when he defeated Nonito Donaire Jr. via knockout. He is scheduled to face WBO world bantamweight champion Paul Butler in an undisputed showdown on December 13 in Japan.

—MGP, GMA News