WBO orders Zolani Tete vs John Riel Casimero next!
The WBO has ordered bantamweight champion Zolani Tete (28-3, 21KO) to make a mandatory title defense against John Riel Casimero (28-4, 19KO).
Casimero is a former two division IBF champion with wins against notable names like Amnat Ruenroeng, Pedro Guevara and current WBC flyweight champion Charlie Edwards among others.
He is currently the interim champion having defeated Ricardo Espinoza Franco by knockout in April. His first defense was a victory over journeyman Cesar Ramirez by stoppage in August.
This bout will be Tete’s first since injuring his shoulder while preparing for his scheduled WBSS semifinal bout against Nonito Donaire. The champ was last seen in the ring ten months ago, defeating 2016 Olympic silver medalist Mikhail Aloyan over twelve rounds.
An interesting fact is both men suffered knockout losses, one after the other to current IBF flyweight champion Moruti Mthalane!
Negotiations are currently underway as a deal is expected soon.
If successful, Tete’s most logical opponent would be the Naoya Inoue vs Nonito Donaire WBSS bantamweight final winner sometime in 2020.
It would be a unification bout with three of the four major titles on the line.
3kingsboxing.com will continue to monitor this story and provide updates as they become available.
By: Jerrell Fletcher
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