WORLD-RATED Filipino boxers Albert Pagara and KJ Cataraja believe that the unification fight between Johnriel Casimero and Naoya Inoue will be an exhilarating war that won’t go the distance.
“It’s going to be a good fight. They will try to knock each other out. The first one that hits his target first will win this,” Pagara, the World Boxing Organization (WBO) No. 6 ranked super bantamweight, told SunStar Cebu.
“That will be a very competitive fight. They are both strong. Whoever lands first wins,” said Cataraja, ranked No. 13 in the WBO super flyweight division. “I think somebody is going to get knocked out.”
Casimero will unify his WBO bantamweight belt with Inoue’s World Boxing Association (WBA) Super and International Boxing Federation (IBF) bantamweight belts on April 25, 2020 at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Both Cataraja and Pagara spent almost a month in Japan to help out Inoue with his preparation for Casimero as his sparring partners. Another Cebu-based fighter, Pete Apolinar, was also tapped by Inoue as a sparmate.
Inoue is one of the best fighters in the world, pound-for-pound, and is also considered as the best bantamweight. He’s currently rated No. 3 in The Ring Magazine’s pound-for-pound list behind pound-for-pound king Saul Alvarez and No. 2 ranked Vasiliy Lomachenko. He’s also holds the lineal The Ring bantamweight crown, in which Casimero is rated No. 3.
The 26-year-old Inoue is coming off a huge unanimous decision win over Filipino star Nonito Donaire Jr. He, however, had his hands full against Donaire Jr., who actually gave him the most difficult fight of his life.
The 31-year-old Casimero, on the other hand, is on an impressive run at bantamweight after losing to Jonas Sultan in an IBF super flyweight title eliminator in 2017.
Casimero earned his fight with Inoue after scoring a third round stoppage of Zolani Tete last Nov. 30, 2019 in Birmingham, England.
For now, the fight is still on with still more than month left before the scheduled date.
Boxing shows have been cancelled or done in closed doors without fans because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended that all events of 50 or more people will be cancelled in the next eight weeks, which should include the Casimero vs. Inoue fight. (EKA)