John Riel Casimero vs Duke Micah Preview Sept. 26th
WBO Bantamweight Champion John Riel Casimero of the Philippines will be defending his title for the first time this Saturday when he takes on undefeated Duke Micah of Ghana in Uncasville, Connecticut. Casimero won the crown in his last outing in November when he stopped Zolani Tete in the third round. The 12-round bout can be seen live in the USA and UK on pay-per-view. Micah was last in the ring in December when he beat Janiel Rivera via an eight-round unanimous decision.
Casimero vs Micah Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Duke Micah +520
- John Riel Casimero -700
My Pick
The 31-year-old Casimero climbs into the ring with a mark of 29-4 with 20 Kos. He made his pro debut in 2007 and has 219 rounds of experience under his belt. He’s gone 7-2 in world title fights with 5 Kos and is 5-3 with 4 Kos against former, current, and future world champions as he has also beaten Luis Alberto Lazarte, Pedro Guevara, Amnat Ruenroeng and Charlie Edwards and was defeated by Ramon Garcia Hirales, Moruti Mthalane and Amnat Ruenroeng with Mthalane being the only man to stop him, which he did in five rounds in 2011.
Casimero’s other pro loss came at the hands of Jonas Sultan by 12-round unanimous decision in 2017. He’s captured several regional and minor titles as a pro including the Philippines Boxing Federation Flyweight Title and the WBO Asia Pacific, Interim WBO and Interim IBF World Light Flyweight Titles. He’s also a former world champion as he formerly held the IBF Light Flyweight Title from July 2012 to May 2014 and defended it three times as well as the IBF Flyweight Title from May to December 2016 which he defended once.
Casimero stands 5-feet-4-inches tall with a 64-inch reach. He’s got good power in his hands with a current knockout ratio of 60.6 per cent. He’s been stopped once, but also has a pretty reliable chin. He’s a solid and underrated pro who isn’t really known outside of Asia but has gone 10-3 with 6 Kos when boxing outside of his homeland. He was scheduled to take on Naoya Inoue earlier this year, but Covid-19 ruined those plans.
Micah is a 29-year-old with a perfect record of 24-0 with 19 Kos. He’s obviously the owner of some powerful fists with a current knockout ratio of 79. 2 per cent. He turned pro back in 2012 and has boxed 128 rounds since. Micah enjoyed a fine amateur career and boxed in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London England where he lost 19-8 on points to Michael Conlan in his second fight. Since turning pro, he’s captured the WBO African, Commonwealth, and WBC International Bantamweight titles.
At 5-feet-7-inches tall, Micah has a three-inch height advantage on the champion but unfortunately his reach is unlisted. He’s fought his last four battles in America and has also fought in the UK before. This is Micah’s first shot at a world title and he lacks experience against top-ranked contenders as of now. His biggest victories so far have been against the likes of Thomas Snow, Jose Gonzalez, Jonathan Aguilar and Matthew Chanda.
Prediction…
Casimero and Micah are both good, and underrated boxers and this could be a highlight of the pay-per-view card. They both have good power but Casimero has definitely more experience against top-ranked opponents and that should certainly help him. I’m looking forward to an entertaining contest with Casimero taking it.
A fine matchup with Casimero’s experience against quality opponents being the difference.
Play Casimero -700 @ BetOnline.ag
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Duke Micah betting • John Riel Casimero betting