Warlito Parrenas recalls what it was like fighting Inoue, weighs in on Casimero showdown

Former WBO oriental super flyweight champion Warlito Parrenas knows what it is like to share the ring with three-division champion Naoya Inoue.

Parrenas and Inoue, now the No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter from Japan, traded leather in 2015 where the Japanese boxer emerged victorious by way of second-round technical knockout.

As far as the Filipino pug can tell, Inoue is a gifted fighter.

“I have sparred with Inoue before he turned pro. He used to be part of Japan's national team so he was an experienced amateur as well,” Parrenas told GMA News Online.

“Inoue is gifted, smart, has power, brave, and has stamina. I asked myself in the first round how is he this fast? I have never fought someone like this. He can move and knows how to fight so I told myself this kid will go places."

Parrenas, 38, also know what it is like to be in the ring with reigning WBO world bantamweight champion John Riel Casimero so he has an idea of how a fight between the two could play out.

“Casimero's style is like that even in sparring,” he remembered.

“He is brave, will time you, and can end you if you get caught. I was groggy when I took a hit because he is really heavy-handed and is always in front of you.”

As December 11 looms as a potential date for a unification showdown between the WBA and IBF world bantamweight champion Inoue and Casimero, Parrenas says it is a fight that could go either way but warned his countryman that he cannot allow the bout to go the distance.

“If the fight goes past seven rounds I will favor Inoue by points,” Parrenas quipped.

“We know Casimero will keep attacking so he has to end the fight early. If I were Casimero, I would not let it go past seven rounds.”

—JMB, GMA News