Mauricio Fuentes Faced Casimero
Mauricio Fuentes faced Johnriel Casimero in Cebu City, Philippines, on May 3, 2014, after the Filipino boxer was stripped of the IBF light flyweight championship for failing to make weight. Their contest ended with Casimero winning in the first round.
Career highlights
The Colombian arrived with a ten-fight winning streak and had never previously fought outside his home country. The scheduled twelve-round assignment at the Waterfront Hotel and Casino was intended to be a championship opportunity.
Casimero’s failure to make the 108-pound limit changed the title circumstances before the bout. The contest still went ahead, with Fuentes facing an opponent who had already lost his championship at the weigh-in.
The opening-round finish
Casimero dropped Fuentes three times in the first round. A right uppercut produced the final knockdown, and referee Gerald White ended the fight at 2:59. Fuentes’s record fell to sixteen wins and two defeats, with ten knockout victories, after his first overseas appearance.
Fuentes made the championship limit at the weigh-in, leaving him eligible to win the vacant belt if he defeated Casimero. The Filipino’s weight problem had therefore removed his own claim without eliminating the Colombian’s opportunity. Casimero’s opening-round victory meant the championship remained vacant, and his camp subsequently discussed a move to the flyweight division rather than another attempt at 108 pounds.
Sources
- GMA News / SPIN: Casimero–Fuentes result and the pre-fight title situation
- The Freeman: Fuentes makes weight and remains eligible for the title
- GMA News / SPIN: Casimero’s move to flyweight after the Fuentes bout
