8/14 PBC on SHO: John Riel Casimero vs Guillermo Rigondeaux (WBO Bantamweight Title)

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Two-division world champion Guillermo Rigondeaux will face bantamweight world champion John Riel Casimero for his WBO belt on Saturday, August 14 live on SHOWTIME headlining a Premier Boxing Champions event from Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California.

The SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast begins at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT and will also see rising unbeaten contender Antonio Russell face the toughest test of his career in former world champion Emmanuel Rodríguez as they vie for the WBA Interim Bantamweight Title in the co-main event. Kicking off the telecast, former world champion Rau’shee Warren duels Damien Vazquez in a 10-round bantamweight bout.

The event is promoted by TGB Promotions. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at AXS.com.

A longtime champion of the 122-pound division, Rigondeaux (20-1, 13 KOs) moved down in weight and captured a WBA bantamweight title against Liborio Solis in February 2020 on SHOWTIME. Since turning professional in 2009 after one of the best amateur careers in history, Rigondeaux has showcased masterful technical skills that made him a unified super bantamweight world champion and perennial member of the pound-for-pound list. A two-time Olympic gold medalist for his native Cuba, Rigondeaux made his name with victories over the likes of Nonito Donaire, Rico Ramos and Joseph Agbeko.

The 32-year-old Casimero (30-4, 21 KOs) of Ormoc City, Leyte, Philippines will make his second title defense in this August 14 matchup, having successfully defended it for the first time by knocking out Duke Micah in September 2020. Casimero trains in Las Vegas and originally won the title with an impressive third-round stoppage of Zolani Tete in November 2019. The three-division champion had previously captured titles at flyweight and light flyweight in a career that dates back to 2007. This will be his third career fight in the U.S. and his second to take place at Dignity Health Sports Park.

The brother of WBC Featherweight Champion Gary Jr. and 2016 U.S. Olympian Gary Antuanne, Antonio Russell (18-0, 12 KOs) announced his arrival amongst the bantamweight division contenders with a technical decision over former world champion Juan Carlos Payano in December 2020 on SHOWTIME. The 28-year-old from Capitol Heights, Md. turned pro in 2015 after an impressive amateur career. After four wins in 2019, Russell kicked off 2020 defeating Jesus Martinez in February.

The 28-year-old Rodríguez (19-2, 12 KOs) returns to action after dropping a controversial split-decision to Reymart Gaballo last December on SHOWTIME. Fighting out of Manati, Puerto Rico, Rodríguez won the IBF Bantamweight World Title with a unanimous decision victory over Paul Butler in 2018 and successfully defended it against then-unbeaten Jason Moloney. Rodríguez went on to lose the title to unbeaten champion Naoya Inoue in their May 2019 title bout.

Warren (18-3, 4 KOs) bounced back from a close decision loss in a world title fight against then unbeaten former champion Nordine Oubaali in January 2019 by earning decisions over Gilberto Mendoza and Sharone Carter. A southpaw from Cincinnati, Ohio, Warren won the WBA Bantamweight World Championship with a majority decision over Juan Carlos Payano in 2016 and lost the title the next year to Zhanat Zhakiyanov by split-decision. The 34-year-old became the first three-time Olympic boxer from the U.S. when he qualified for consecutive Olympic teams in 2004, 2008 and 2012.

The 24-year-old southpaw Vázquez (15-2-1, 7 KOs) was born in Thornton, Col. and now fights out of Las Vegas. The younger brother of former two-time champion Israel Vázquez, he most recently lost to super bantamweight champion Brandon Figueroa last September after having previously scored a stoppage win over Alejandro Moreno in February of 2020. Vázquez turned pro in 2013 and reeled off 14 consecutive wins to begin his career in the paid ranks.
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Casimero-Rigondeaux: WBO Won't Recognize Secondary WBA Title in Fight
guillermo-rigondeaux%20(2)_5.jpg

BY JAKE DONOVAN
Published Thu Jul 22, 2021, 10:24 AM EDT


The upcoming fight between John Riel Casimero and Guillermo Rigondeaux remains one of the most anticipated matchups of the summer.

What it won’t be, however, is a sanctioned unification match.

Casimero (30-4, 21KOs) and Rigondeaux (20-1, 13KOs) are due to collide August 14, live on Showtime from Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California. The bout has been appropriately billed as a WBO bantamweight title fight, a belt which Casimero has held dating back to his third-round knockout of Zolani Tete in November 2019.

Rigondeaux—a Cuban southpaw based out of Miami—holds a secondary version of the WBA bantamweight title, which he claimed in a twelve-round win over Liborio Solis last February just prior to the pandemic. The belt has not been referenced in any press releases, although he is mentioned in those same distributions as a two-division champion.

That status has come into question, as three-division champion Naoya Inoue (21-0, 18KOs) currently holds the WBA “Super” bantamweight title. Sanctioning bodies generally do not recognize secondary titles from other organizations, a reminder the WBO has issued to all parties involved in Casimero-Rigondeaux.

“Please be advised that the WBO only recognizes Naoya Inoue as WBA Bantamweight Champion,” Francisco ‘Paco’ Valcarcel, longtime president of the WBO declared Wednesday evening. “WBO will never unify with Regular, Interim nor In Recess.”

Rigondeaux was originally announced to face Casimero this summer, only for those plans to change in the aftermath of Nonito Donaire (41-6, 27KOs) claiming the WBC bantamweight title in a fourth-round knockout of unbeaten titlist Nordine Oubaali. Three weeks later came an announcement that Casimero and Donaire were set to collide in a WBO/WBC title unification clash, one that both sanctioning bodies were ready to embrace.

No sooner were such plans revealed did the fight fall apart due to a variety of concerns from the Donaire side. Casimero revisited the original script, with Rigondeaux back on board for the fight.

The WBO is fine with the fight, as long as it is agreed that the only way Rigondeaux truly becomes a two-division titlist is by dethroning Casimero next month.

“We ONLY acknowledge [one] World Champion per weight division,” Valcarcel notes. “Waiting on Rigondeaux’ request to be classified accordingly.”

Despite the WBO’s hard stance on what should be a widely accepted rule, there have been past exceptions.

Ironically, Inoue was permitted to keep his WBA “World” bantamweight title entering his May 2019 showdown with Puerto Rico’s Emmanuel Rodriguez, who was an unbeaten IBF champ at the time. The bout came as part of the World Boxing Super Series (WBSS), with Inoue scoring a second-round knockout to win the IBF title while retain his secondary WBA title status. The unbeaten pound-for-pound entrant from Japan upgraded to WBA “Super” champion following a twelve-round decision over Donaire, who held the main title preceding their November 2019 WBSS final.

Most recently, Brandon Figueroa entered as the WBA “World” junior featherweight titlist ahead of his May 15 clash with WBC titlist Luis Nery. Figueroa won by seventh-round knockout and oddly claims unified title status in a division where Murodjon Akhmadaliev not only holds the WBA “Super” title but is also a true unified titlist as he also owns the IBF strap.

Figueroa’s WBA status could come into play in September, when he challenges WBO junior featherweight titlist Stephen Fulton. The bout can just as easily move forward as a WBC/WBO unification bout and allow for the situation to be the WBA’s problem.
 
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