Oscar De La Hoya, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, shared his perspective on WBA cruiserweight titleholder Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez’s upcoming unification fight against WBO cruiserweight champion Chris Billam-Smith.
The matchup, scheduled for November 16 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, headlines the “Latino Night” card, broadcast on DAZN, and promoted by Golden Boy Promotions.
Ramirez, 33, enters the bout with momentum, holding a 46-1 (36 KOs) record. The Mexican southpaw Ramirez rebounded strongly from his one career defeat to former light heavyweight titleholder Dmitry Bivol, a loss De La Hoya believes was pivotal for Ramirez’s growth. Since then, Ramirez claimed the WBA cruiserweight belt by defeating Arsen Goulamirian in March.
Speaking to DAZN, De La Hoya reflected on the impact of Ramirez’s experience against Bivol. “I think Bivol really taught him a good lesson. Having an undefeated record going in against someone like Bivol, who can box and punch, we saw what he did to a lot of great fighters. He’s an excellent boxer. So having to deal with that and having to deal with adversity made [Ramirez] a better, more complete fighter.”
De La Hoya highlighted the importance of adaptability, noting that Ramirez now understands how to pace and manage a fight. “He now knows he has to switch up gears meaning he can’t just fight [in] first gear, second gear, [he has to] turn it up, [and go to the] third, fourth, fifth gear,” De La Hoya said.
Billam-Smith, 34, steps into the ring on an 11-fight win streak, including a June 2023 victory over Lawrence Okolie to capture the WBO title and a subsequent win over Richard Riakporhe, to avenge his lone professional career defeat. Despite the challenge Billam-Smith poses, De La Hoya sees Ramirez’s experience as the deciding factor. “This fight with Billam is going to be tough for both guys, but I seriously think Zurdo has the experience to take Billam to the later rounds and possibly stop him,” De La Hoya said.