Nonoy Neri, a key member of Manny Pacquiao’s training team, could not help but bang his head on the wall in disgust over the inability of three-division champion John Riel Casimero to land a lucrative fight with Naoya Inoue.
Casimero is considered as the only fighter in the super-bantamweight class who has what it takes to beat the Japanese pound-for-pound king, who knocked out Mexican Luis Nery last Monday at the Tokyo Dome.
“Sayang, sayang (It’s a pity),” Neri told DAILY TRIBUNE from his Davao City residence.
Neri used to train Casimero but alliances forged by the fighter with a group outside his promotional team MP Promotions led to their separation.
Nowadays, Casimero is being represented by a Japanese management team but is trained by his brother Jayson.
Neri feels Casimero has to make a drastic move to become relevant again.
“He is being surrounded by people who doesn’t know anything about boxing,” Neri said.
Casimero, though still world-ranked, hasn’t figured in a noteworthy fight since severing ties with MP Promotions.
Instead, Casimero found himself engaging in low-key bouts against subpar opposition.
Since beating Guillermo Rigondeaux of Cuba in August 2021 in California, Casimero, now 35 years old, has only fought thrice, winning two and drawing the last.
Two years ago, he was even stripped of a world title for weight problems.
So far, Casimero doesn’t have a bout on schedule.
Neri swears the flashy Casimero is the guy who could beat Inoue.
“He has the power and he can take a great shot,” Neri said, traits he said are crucial in facing a high-caliber foe like Inoue.
But it doesn’t look as if Inoue and his handlers are interested in meeting Casimero, who was actually scheduled to clash with Inoue in April 2020 in Las Vegas.
But owing to Covid, the fight was scrapped and efforts to revive it didn’t materialize anymore as Inoue and his Japanese team and Top Rank took another route.
Next up for Inoue is a September showdown with Australian Sam Goodman, who was at ringside when Inoue battered Nery to a pulp.
Unless the world of boxing goes on a continental shift, it appears that an Inoue-Casimero encounter is dead in the water.