Casimero not taking chances

IBF flyweight champion John Riel Casimero is far from taking English challenger Charlie Edwards lightly and although the battler from Ormoc is the heavy favorite to win, he’s treating their fight at the O2 Arena in London on Sept. 10 like his career is on the line.

Casimero, 26, is training at the Victory Mall gym in Caloocan with Jhun Agrabio while his manager Sammy Gello-ani is in Cebu waiting for advice when to pick up their UK visas. If plans don’t miscarry, they leave for London on Sunday.

Gello-ani said after Casimero wrested the IBF crown from Thailand’s Amnat Ruenroeng on a fourth round knockout in Beijing last May, the Filipino’s Las Vegas-based Uruguay business agent Sampson Lewkowicz broached the idea of a voluntary defense in London.

“Edwards’ name came out as a possible challenger,” said Gello-ani. “We checked out Edwards and found out he’s quite inexperienced. We saw it as a good opportunity for Casimero to stay active and get a five-figure dollar purse. It’s important for him to have continuity.  We have big plans for him. He was looking forward to fighting Roman Gonzalez but now, Chocolatito is moving up to superflyweight. Maybe, Casimero will defend his title once, twice or thrice more after Edwards then he, too, can move up. But the priority now is to beat Edwards.”

Gello-ani said Casimero is preparing for a tough fight. “His mindset is every opponent is dangerous,” he said. “We know how Edwards fights. He’s a stylist, he likes to jab and run.  Jhun is making moves to counter what we expect from Edwards. If he runs, Casimero will chase him down. Casimero has to be aggressive. In his first few fights, he had a tendency to sit and wait for an opening to score a knockout. Now, he’s a different fighter, more mature, more patient.”

Edwards, 23, is unbeaten with an 8-0 record, including three KOs, since turning pro only last year. In contrast, Casimero’s slate is 22-3, with 14 KOs since his pro debut in 2007. A road warrior, Casimero isn’t averse to fighting on foreign soil. So far, he’s won twice in Mexico and once each in Panama, Argentina, Nicaragua and China. Gello-ani said he prefers Casimero to fight abroad than at home. However, Casimero’s three losses were all on hostile territory – in Mexico, South Africa and Thailand.

In 2014, Casimero lost his IBF lightflyweight title on the scales when he weighed in at 113 3/4 for his defense against Mauricio Fuentes in Cebu. He was 5 3/4 pounds over the limit. The IBF allowed the bout to continue with the stipulation that if Casimero wins, the title remains vacant but if Fuentes wins, he becomes the new champion. Casimero, penalized for being overweight by wearing oversized gloves, knocked out Fuentes in the first round.

“I think it’s harder for Casimero to focus when he’s fighting in the Philippines,” said Gello-ani. “Too many distractions at home. He’s more focused when fighting abroad. Besides, we don’t have a permanent TV network so we can’t really plan for fights at home. Against Edwards, we’re still finalizing a deal with the English TV coveror and the network that will show the fight in the Philippines.”

As an amateur, Edwards won a bronze medal at the European Championships and two English national titles. But he didn’t qualify for the 2012 London Olympics. Now, he has a chance to win a world title at Casimero’s expense. Edwards said he’s out to shock the world.

“I looked at what Casimero’s done,” said Edwards, quoted by John Dennen in Boxing News of London (Aug. 11, 2016, issue). “Obviously, he’s a great fighter but there’s something about his style that I know, I just know he’s made for me. I just knew it as soon as I saw him, just little clips and this is when he knocked out that Amnat. I thought no, I want him. He’s well beatable, especially for a world title shot so early on in my career.”

Edwards said he’s sure to beat Casimero because he’s not Manny Pacquiao. “We’ve sat down and watched him,” he said. “He’s slow-footed which I was very shocked at. When I got told about him, a Filipino, I thought he’d be quick, rapid like Manny Pacquiao. But he is very slow-footed. He can punch with both hands but I think what is going to beat him is my awkwardness, my movement. And he’s very one-paced. He doesn’t really have a lot of gears. I don’t know, I look at him and I just think ‘I’ve got every attribute to beat you.’ That’s why, going into this fight, whatever he’s got, I will do better.”

It will be Casimero’s debut in a European ring and the atmosphere in London will be a new experience. The English fans are extremely partisan and patriotic. They’ll try to make Casimero feel uncomfortable and unsure of himself. It’s up to Casimero to silence the home crowd with his fists.