Johnriel Casimero arrives in UK for Paul Butler fight

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Filipino boxing champion Johnriel Casimero already arrived in the United Kingdom and is getting ready for his delayed clash against the upcoming Paul Butler.

The highly-anticipated World Boxing Organization (WBO) bantamweight championship belt defense by Casimero against Butler was supposed to go down last December 11, 2021 but a series of strange events led to the cancelation of the fight.

Casimero was a no-show during the weigh-in last December and confirmed that he was rushed to the hospital when he was diagnosed with viral gastritis.

After the incident, the WBO issued a show-cause order to the Casimero camp which they complied within the given number of days to avoid getting his belt stripped.

Now that all is set for the Casimero camp, the training staff is confident that their ward will no longer deal with weight issues come weigh-in.

Cutman Stephen Lunas said that hours after they arrived in UK, a light workout was done by Casimero and is already in great shape heading into the fight.

Casimero is seeking to retain his WBO bantamweight belt against the crafty and hard-hitting Butler who was the former IBF bantamweight champion last 2014 and the IBF super-flyweight champion last 2015.

The super-fight will take place on April 22, 2022, at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool England.