Casimero battles frustration, defends WBO bantamweight crown vs Rigondeaux

LOS ANGELES – John Riel Casimero chased slippery Cuban craftsman Guillermo Rigondeaux all night and dealt with frustration in an uneventful bout on his way to a split-decision victory to retain the WBO bantamweight championship at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson City, California on Saturday (Sunday, Manila time).

It was a stinker of a fight that saw less than 50 punches landed by each boxer, thanks largely to Rigondeaux’s elusive style.

Judges Robert Hoyle and Daniel Sandoval scored the bout for Casimero, 117-111 and 116-112, while David Cheatham had it 115-113 for Rigondeaux, a two-time Olympic gold medalist who’s notorious for his boring style that makes him a hard sell.

“My expectation is a knockout, my fans want a knockout but Rigo always ran,” said Casimero on the ring afterwards.

The 40-year-old Rigondeaux used the ring to his benefit as he kept running away from a constantly stalking Casimero, who likewise struggled to land anything significant.

The atrocious fight saw just 47 punches landed by the defending champion and 44 by the challenger.

“The was the worst performance that a guy ever did,” said MP Promotions president Sean Gibbons, referring to Rigondeaux’s refusal to engage.

The Cuban, for his part, defended the way he fought and thought he did just enough to win.

“That's my style and it's the only thing I know,” said Rigondeaux.

The win improved Casimero’s record to 31-4 (21 KOs), while Rigondeaux dropped to 20-2 (13 KOs).