MANILA – John Riel Casimero scored a stoppage victory in his return bout in Japan, knocking out Tom Mizokoshi in the fifth round of their non-title featherweight fight at the Aichi Sky Expo in Tokoname on December 27.
Fighting in Japan for the first time since completing a one-year suspension imposed by the Japanese Boxing Commission, Casimero dictated the pace from the opening bell and gradually broke down the Japanese journeyman before the referee stepped in during the fifth round.
The win ended a brief skid for the former three-division world champion and marked his first victory since October 2024.
Casimero, 36, had been sidelined in Japan following a weight-related infraction that led to a one-year ban, though he returned to the ring last year in Kyrgyzstan where he suffered a loss.
Saturday’s result improved his record to 35 wins against five losses and one draw, with 24 knockouts, as he seeks to reestablish himself on the international boxing scene.
In the main bout of the evening, unbeaten Filipino Kenneth Llover successfully defended his OPBF bantamweight title with a second-round technical knockout of China’s Ayati Sailike.
Llover asserted control early before flooring Sailike twice in the second round with a sustained offensive burst. The referee stopped the contest at the 2:07 mark of the round following the second knockdown.
The 22-year-old champion remained undefeated at 17-0 with 12 knockouts, further strengthening his position among the region’s top bantamweight contenders.
The victory continued Llover’s run of decisive finishes and capped a successful night for Filipino boxers competing in Japan./PN
