GILBERTO Ramirez puts his WBA ‘Super’ cruiserweight title on the line against WBO champion Chris Billam-Smith in an excellent unification matchup this Saturday evening. Boxing currently exists in an era of undisputed, and this is the latest step towards tying all four belts together in yet another weight class. Let’s see who else is on the undercard.
Jose Carlos Ramirez vs. Arnold Barboza
It’s fair to say things have gone off the boil a bit for Ramirez since his sole career loss, to Josh Taylor in the pandemic era of 2021. It’s easy to forget that Ramirez and Taylor were pretty much neck-and-neck, with two knockdowns ultimately proving the difference on all three scorecards. Since then, Ramirez has scored three wins over fighters whose best days have drifted on into the wilderness.
Not so for next foe, Arnold Barboza, an undefeated Californian who, like his opponent here, left Top Rank in search of something different. Barboza is a neat and tidy boxer with limited power and some solid wins on the record. Many thought he was lucky to win his last fight against Belfast southpaw Sean McComb. Therefore, the form guide could land in favour of whoever gets off to the better start.
William Zepeda vs. Tevin Farmer
As he waits for a big opportunity, Zepeda boxes Farmer for the WBC Interim lightweight title. The Mexican buzzsaw is unbeaten in 31 and has grown accustomed to overpowering fringe contenders. Farmer was once a skilled champion but has seen better days. A commendable display against Raymond Muratalla means Tevin arrives on some reasonable form.
Oscar Collazo vs. Thammanoon Niyomtrong
Another unification, this time at minimumweight, sees Puerto Rico’s WBO king Collazo, unbeaten in 10, face off with Thailand’s WBA champ Niyomtrong. Collazo holds a good win over the current WBC champion, Melvin Jerusalem.
Niyomtrong is arguably the number one fighter at the weight but has been plagued by inactivity. He was last seen scraping out a majority decision win over Alex Winwood in Australia just a couple of months ago. That 12-round workout could be just the rust-shedding exercise he needed before this clash.
Oscar Duarte vs. Batyr Akhmedov
Fresh from his late stoppage over Joseph Diaz, a bounceback fight since Ryan Garcia stopped him, Duarte was originally supposed to box Kenneth Sims Jr, who pulled out with a knee injury. In steps an excellent replacement, Batyr Akhmedov, who has become a bit of a nearly man when trying to get over the line in big fights. This should be a good scrap, given their respective styles.
Ziyad Almaayouf vs. Juan Carlos Ramirez Garcia
24-year-old ‘Zizo’ improved to 6-0 with a disqualification win over Poland’s Michal Bulik in Los Angeles. The Saudi prospect gets Mexico’s Ramirez Garcia, who was stopped in two rounds by quality Canada-based Colombian Jhon Orobio two fights ago.