Zolani Tete 28 (21 KOs)-4 (2 KOs)-0 loses by 3rd round TKO to John Riel Casimero 29 (20 KOs)-4 (1 KO)-0 losing his WBO Bantamweight world title this Saturday at the Arena Birmingham broadcasted on BT Sport in the UK and ESPN+ in the US.
The thing is when writing these articles, you can be made to look fairly foolish fairly quickly. Putting your predictions out there for the whole world to see when you are an “expert” to some and an “enthusiast” to others very often doesn’t always pay off.
In doing prefight predictions I always make a point of picking a winner and how it may happen. I do listen to a YouTuber who works on a basis of not making a definitive prediction if he’s not sure, but apart from the fact that I don’t think you would want really want to read an 800 word article and to read…
“well I don’t know who’s gonna win..”
At the end, isn’t exactly the most satisfying, and also at the end of the day very few fights are perfectly 50 50 in my head, if I’ve got a 55 45 in my head, I’ll make a prediction based off that and let you all know that I’m nowhere near certain but that is the way I’m leaning.
It’s in these sorts of fights though where I do look a bit more foolish, and I am reaching a bit to back my previous prediction.
Saying, “well, for two rounds it went as I expected” is sort of like saying “well it was only in the main course that I poisoned you” I mean, I wouldn’t exactly be bragging about it.
But for two rounds it went as I expected,
I am shameless at backing my predictions haha,
Tete popping a jab, not landing it, but keeping Casemiro at arm’s length and the Filipino looking to lunge in with right hands of which the South African was ducking and pivoting well.
The only real notable things to note of the first two were a couple of back hand shots to the body landed by both, and a solid straight left combined with a head clash that Tete landed in the 2nd.
Really quiet couple of rounds to be honest, I scored both to Tete, but the first could easily have gone to Casemiro.
The fight ended in a way that it rarely does at the lighter weights, in a flash.
Another YouTuber made the point that the stoppage reminded him of the Charlo Lubin knockout, and it really was.
I’ve made a point of watching the first knockdown a few times on 0.25 speed, because when you view it slowly you can really see what went wrong for Tete here.
Basically, in the southpaw orthodox matchup, bending from the waist puts your head towards your opponent’s back hand. When Casimero throws his jab, you see Tete bend from the waist, Casemiro just then takes a little pause, steps forward, puts his left foot outside Tete’s right for better positioning, and once he sees Tete bent just smashes him with the right hand.
In short, he waits for Tete to bend, then hits him when he can’t attack from that position.
Tete really never did recover from this, and as I said in my pre fight I am a bit saddened by this because I do get the sense that Tete hasn’t quite got the money from his career that his talent deserved, and had he won this fight a matchup against Rigo could have been on the cards.
I would like to see a rematch, but I feel like I would be in the minority, but I suppose I can’t complain when a hard hitting exiting Filipino jumps on the scene dethroning an established African champ.
Sounds familiar?
Also on the card Anthony Cacace 18 (7 KOs)-1 (0 KOs)-0 wins the British Super-Featherweight title in a 12 round split decision victory against Sam Bowen 15 (11 KOs)-1 (0 KOs)-0, and Lerrone Richards 13 (3 KOs)-0-0 also wins a 12 round split decision victory against Lennox Clarke 19 (7 KOs)-1 (0 KOs)-1 for the vacant British Super-Middleweight title.