Guillermo Rigondeaux vs. John Riel Casimero

John Riel Casimero vs. Guillermo Rigondeaux

Date	August 14, 2021
Venue	Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, California, U.S.
Title(s) on the line	WBO bantamweight title
Tale of the tape
Boxer John Riel Casimero Guillermo Rigondeaux Nickname Quadro Alas' "(Four Aces)" El Chacal "(The Jackal)" Hometown Ormoc City, Leyte, Philippines Santiago de Cuba, Santiago de Cuba Province, Cuba Pre-fight record 30–4 (21 KOs) 20–1 (1) (13 KO) Age 32 years, 6 months 40 years, 10 months Height 5 ft 3 in (160 cm) 5 ft 4 in (163 cm) Weight 118 lb (54 kg) 117 lb (53 kg) Style Orthodox Southpaw Recognition WBO Bantamweight Champion 3-division world champion WBO No. 4 Ranked Bantamweight 2-division world champion
Result
Casimero wins by Split decision (113–115, 116–112, 117–111)

John Riel Casimero vs. Guillermo Rigondeaux, was a professional boxing match contested on August 14, 2021, for the WBO bantamweight championship.

Background

In April 2021 it was announced that Casimero would defend his Bantamweight title against two-time Olympic gold medalist and 2-division world champion Guillermo Rigondeaux.[1] On June 19, however he was replaced by WBC champion Nonito Donaire, with Rigondeaux likely to face an opponent undercard.[2] However after the fight between Casimero and Donaire fell apart over insults directed at Donaire's wife,[3] Rigondeaux stepped back in to fight Casimero as had been originally planned.[4]

The bout took place at the Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, California U.S.[5]

The fight

In an extremely uneventful bout, Casimero pressured his opponent all night, fighting on the front foot and throwing more punches than Rigondeaux, who was reluctant to engage. Casimero would edge out Rigondeaux via split decision. The official judges scored the fight 113–115, 116–112, and 117–111.[6]

CompuBox claimed that the two boxers landed only a combined 91 punches, the lowest total for a 12-round fight in CompuBox's 36-year history, with Casimero landing 47 of 297 (15.8%) and Rigondeaux 44 of 221 (19.9%).

Official scorecards

Judge	Fighter	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Total[7]
Tim Cheatham	Rigondeaux	9	10	10	10	9	10	10	9	9	10	9	10	115
	Casimero	10	9	9	9	10	9	9	10	10	9	10	9	113
Robert Hoyle	Rigondeaux	9	9	10	9	9	10	10	9	9	9	9	9	111
	Casimero	10	10	9	10	10	9	9	10	10	10	10	10	117
David Sutherland	Rigondeaux	9	10	10	10	9	9	9	9	9	10	9	9	112
	Casimero	10	9	9	9	10	10	10	10	10	9	10	10	116

Aftermath

In his post-fight interview, Casimero criticized his opponent's extremely passive gameplan, saying "I'm focused on [the] knockout, but Rigondeaux always runs. Rigondeaux just always runs. No fighting." He continued by reaffirming that it is his intention to unify the bantamweight division, targeting the division's other titleholders, Donaire and Naoya Inoue. Casimero concluded his interview by issuing the middle finger to Inoue.[8]

The previous record was held by the Mario Barrios-Devis Boschiero lightweight bout held in 2016 in New Jersey were the two fighters landed a combined 100 punches.[9]

Fight card

Confirmed bouts:[10]

Main card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Bantamweight	John Riel Casimero (c)	def.	Guillermo Rigondeaux	SD	12/12		[a]
Bantamweight	Gary Antonio Russell	vs.	Emmanuel Rodríguez	NC-ND	1/12	0:16	[b]
Bantamweight	Rau'shee Warren	def.	Damien Vázquez	KO	2/10	2:55
Undercard
Super lightweight	Brandun Lee	def.	Ezequil Victor Fernandez	KO	1/8	1:40
Bantamweight	Juan Carlos Payano	def.	Raymond Tabugon	RTD	5/8	3:00
Middleweight	Alan Emmanuel Castano	def.	Christian Aguirre	TKO	3/6	0:53
Bantamweight	Jonas Sultan	def.	Sharone Carter	TKO	7/8	2:29
Middleweight	Benjamin Stanoff	def.	Maycon Oller Da Silva	UD	4/4

1. For WBO Bantamweight title
2. Accidental headbutt - Rodriguez cannot continue due to injury.

Broadcasting

Country / Region	Broadcaster
Canada	TSN
United States	Showtime

References

1. Idec, Keith (15 April 2021). "Guillermo Rigondeaux-John Riel Casimero Set For August 14 On Showtime". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 2021-08-12.
2. Idec, Keith (19 June 2021). "Donaire Replaces Rigondeaux, To Face Casimero In 118-Pound Unification Fight August 14". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 2021-07-26.
3. "Nonito Donaire cancels unification fight with John Riel Casimero over insults hurled at his wife". CBSSports.com. 30 June 2021. Retrieved 2021-07-26.
4. "John Riel Casimero-Guillermo Rigondeaux back on after Donaire unification falls through". The Ring. 2021-07-04. Retrieved 2021-07-26.
5. "John Riel Casimero vs. Guillermo Rigondeaux: date, fight time, TV channel and live stream | DAZN News Philippines". DAZN. August 10, 2021.
6. "Casimero edges Rigondeaux by split decision in low action bout to retain title | DAZN News Philippines". DAZN. August 15, 2021.
7. https://www.premierboxingchampions.com/rigondeaux-vs-casimero/scorecard
8. "Casimero bests Rigondeaux in low action fight". ESPN.com. 2021-08-15. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
9. "Casimero beats Rigondeaux via split decision to retain world title". Spin.ph.
10. "BoxRec - event".

Preceded by vs. Duke Micah	John Riel Casimero's bouts 14 August 2021	Succeeded by vs. Ryo Akaho
Preceded by vs. Liborio Solís	Guillermo Rigondeaux's bouts 14 August 2021	Succeeded by vs. Vincent Astrolabio