John Riel Casimero returns with first-round TKO of Saul Sanchez

Junior featherweight John Riel Casimero might be back in the win column, though questions about his professionalism remain.

After two failed attempts to make weight on Saturday, Oct. 12, Casimero picked a first-round technical knockout of former title contender Saul Sanchez at Yokohama Budokan in Yokohama, Japan.

The former three-division titleholder Casimero (34-4-1, 23 KOs), 35, took a moment to see what the 27-year-old Sanchez (21-4, 12 KOs), of Encino, Calif. had before unloading a barrage of punches. A right hook staggered Sanchez, who briefly touched the canvas with his gloves, prompting referee Yuji Fukuchi to administer a count.

Sanchez beat the count and attempted to retaliate, but that decision led to his downfall. Casimero landed a crushing left hook that floored Sanchez. Although Sanchez managed to rise again, Casimero overwhelmed him with a flurry of punches, forcing the referee to stop the bout at 2:41 of the opening round.

Casimero’s career has been turbulent in recent years. Since his August 2021 win over Guillermo Rigondeaux, he has fought just four times, all in Asia, including this latest bout. His last fight was almost exactly a year ago, on October 12, 2023.

For Sanchez, this marks his second loss in 2024, following a narrow majority decision defeat to then-WBO bantamweight titleholder Jason Moloney in January. He rebounded with an eight-round unanimous decision over Arthur Villanueva, but the loss to Casimero was the first time Sanchez had been stopped in his career.