Zolani Tete vs John Riel Casimero

Two right hands in the third round overturned Zolani Tete’s early control and brought his WBO bantamweight championship to an abrupt end. John Riel Casimero stopped the South African at 2:14 of the round at Arena Birmingham on November 30, 2019, becoming a world champion in a third weight division. Tete was knocked down twice and never recovered his balance sufficiently to withstand the challenger’s pursuit. Referee Steve Gray stopped the contest with the champion on his feet, taking further punches and unable to defend himself effectively.

The contest, staged by Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions, matched the established champion against the WBO’s interim titleholder. Tete, 31, was returning after more than a year out of the ring. His previous appearance had been a decision victory over Mikhail Aloyan in October 2018, and a shoulder injury had subsequently forced him out of the World Boxing Super Series before a scheduled meeting with Nonito Donaire. Casimero, 30, had already held world championships at light flyweight and flyweight. Although considerably shorter than Tete, he brought experience of winning important contests away from the Philippines, including his stoppage of Charlie Edwards in London in 2016.

Tete made effective use of his height and reach in the opening round. Boxing from his southpaw stance, he extended the right jab and obliged Casimero to begin his attacks from outside comfortable punching distance. The challenger circled, looked for opportunities to reach the body and occasionally launched hooks, but much of his early work fell short. Tete maintained that pattern in the second. His long lead hand kept Casimero occupied, and the Filipino had difficulty getting close enough to put punches together. The opening exchanges gave little indication that the champion’s position was about to deteriorate so quickly.

Casimero found the necessary distance in the third. Moving inside, he landed a short right hook against the side of Tete’s head. The champion bent forward, plainly disturbed by the punch, and Casimero immediately delivered another right to the same area. Tete fell to the canvas. He rose before the count was completed, but his legs were unsteady, and he struggled to remain upright near the corner. When the action resumed, he reached towards Casimero’s legs and stumbled down again. Gray treated that fall as a slip and helped him regain his feet. It provided no sign that Tete had recovered from the original blows.

Casimero kept close and renewed the attack. Tete went down for a second official knockdown and again managed to rise, but his balance remained badly impaired. The challenger followed him towards the corner, throwing at a champion who could neither move clear nor produce an effective reply. A further attack, including a left hook, brought Gray between them. The finish had followed a clear sequence: Casimero breached the distance, hurt Tete with the right hand and denied him the time needed to recover. Tete’s success with the jab in the opening rounds ceased to matter once he could no longer hold his ground.

The victory raised Casimero’s record to 29 wins, 4 losses and 20 knockouts. Tete left with 28 wins, 4 losses and 21 knockouts. Afterwards, the new champion turned his attention towards Naoya Inoue, holder of the WBA and IBF bantamweight titles and the recent winner of the World Boxing Super Series. “Come on, Inoue!” Casimero declared. That remained a challenge rather than an arranged contest, but his performance had given the proposed unification greater substance. He had entered Birmingham as the interim champion and left with the full title after decisively overcoming an opponent whose reach had initially kept him at bay.

I thought Tete controlled the distance early, but Casimero found the opening that mattered. His short right near the temple wrecked Tete’s balance, and the follow-up showed a seasoned finisher recognising his chance. Casimero had already proved against Charlie Edwards that travelling didn’t bother him. This was another solid away win. My concern was Tete being allowed to continue when his legs had clearly gone. Getting up showed courage, but he couldn’t defend himself. I’d have stopped it earlier. Casimero deserved every bit of credit for finishing so decisively.