MANILA, Philippines – Undefeated fighter Johnriel Casimero of Ormoc City is in line for a shot at the WBO lightflyweight crown, now held by Puerto Rico?s Ivan (Iron Boy) Calderon, before the year ends but to earn it, he has to hurdle a tough obstacle ? Mexican southpaw Ramon Garcia in an eliminator early next month.
Casimero, 20, was booked to face Garcia at Madison Square Garden in New York City on June 12 but the entire card was canceled due to promotional difficulties. The fight has been reset in Mexico. Casimero?s business manager Sammy Gello-ani told The STAR yesterday he expects a confirmation on the new date from Uruguay matchmaker Sampson Lewkowicz within a few days.
?Casimero is ready for Garcia,? said Gello-ani. ?We know Garcia isn?t an easy opponent ? he has won his last 10 fights. But Casimero is confident. This is his stepping-stone to a world title shot. He can?t afford to lose to Garcia.?
Casimero?s ultimate target is Calderon, the durable WBO lightflyweight titlist whose defense against Mexican Jesus Iribe was also on the scuttled Madison Square Garden show. Calderon, 35, ruled as WBO minimumweight champion in 2003-07 and turned back 11 challengers in a row before moving up to the 108-pound division. But the Puerto Rican seems to be slowing down ? he was cut badly in his last three outings and appeared shaky in two defenses against Filipino Rodel Mayol, drawing once and winning by technical decision in the other bout.
Casimero was sensational in halting Colombia?s Cesar Canchilla in the 11th round to capture the vacant WBO interim lightflyweight belt in Managua, Nicaragua, last December. Canchilla was floored once in the eighth round and twice in the 11th before referee Jose Hiram Rivera stopped the carnage.
?The plan was to go for an early knockout but Canchilla was tougher than we expected,? said Gello-ani who was at ringside with WBO president Paco Valcarcel. ?After the sixth round, Casimero made a tactical change. He decided to fight defensively and tire out Canchilla. In the eighth, Casimero found an opening for his right and Canchilla went down. But Casimero didn?t rush it. He knew Canchilla still had the power to score a knockout. Before the start of the 11th round, I stood up from my seat and ran to Casimero?s corner. I told him to go for a knockout because if not, the decision will probably go to Canchilla.?
Casimero, the WBO No. 4 contender, did as he was told. He engaged Canchilla toe-to-toe and got the job done. Valcarcel was impressed and so were the 20,000 fans who packed the Denis Mendoza National Stadium to witness the card that was staged as a tribute to the late Alexis Arguello.
?Paco praised Casimero for his intelligence,? said Gello-ani. ?Though he?s still very young, he?s mature for his age. Of all my young fighters, he?s the most responsible. He?s self-motivated. He has excellent defense and very good footwork which he developed playing football when he was a kid. It was his first foreign fight and he wasn?t anxious. We flew in early to Managua to get acclimatized and that was a big factor. A long flight is very tiring so we always program a two-week stay before a fight.?
Gello-ani said he took in Danny Bactol to join Tepora in Casimero?s corner for the Garcia bout. ?They?re working on his footwork and at the same time, training him to be busier in throwing punches and focusing on his conditioning,? said Gello-ani. ?We won?t take Garcia lightly. A loss will mean throwing away the chance to fight Calderon.?
Garcia, 27, is no slouch with a 12-1-1 record, including eight KOs compared to Casimero?s 14-0, with eight KOs. He hasn?t lost since dropping a split decision to Francisco Reyes three years ago ? a defeat that was later reversed in a rematch. Garcia is coming off a second round disposal of Manuel Arango last February.
While not looking beyond Garcia, Gello-ani said negotiations have started for the Calderon fight.
?My concern is the fight venue,? said Gello-ani. ?If the fight is held on neutral grounds, it?s no problem. We?d like to promote it in the Philippines. Calderon is willing to fight here provided we give him a good purse. His price, however, is steep ? $200,000. We?re still negotiating but the possibility isn?t remote. If the fight is in Puerto Rico, the only way Casimero will win is by knockout. I think Casimero can catch Calderon but it will take a lot of hard work.?
Gello-ani said the immediate priority is to turn back Garcia. ?This is a good break for Casimero but it?s a must-win situation,? he continued. ?The plan is for Casimero to be exposed first and beat a credible opponent like Garcia. Calderon is the next target but Casimero has to finish Garcia first.?
