Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez will defend his WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles against #1-ranked WBA contender Yuniel Dorticos on June 28th.

Hopes for More

Fans were expecting more from Zurdo Ramirez (47-1, 30 KOs) than this because the 39-year-old Dorticos is an old-timer, long past his best. He hasn’t beaten anyone notable in seven years since his victory over Mateusz Masternak in 2018. That was around the time that Dorticos stopped being an active fighter and transitioned into a part-timer.

The former IBF and WBA cruiserweight champion Dorticos (27-2, 25 KOs) has somehow been able to climb to the #1 spot with the World Boxing Association despite fighting only four times since 2020.

Dorticos, who comes from Cuba, has been extremely inactive, and his wins have been against sub-level opposition. It appears that the WBA is basically giving him his #1 ranking based on his past credentials rather than on who he’s beaten in the last four years.

Dorticos’ Last Four Fights

– Alan Campa: 19-12
– Deibis Berrocal: 20-21
– Jesse Bryan: 21-10-2
– Mairis Briedis: Loss – 12-round majority decision

Gilberto Ramirez is coming off a 12-round unanimous decision win over Chris Billiam-Smith on November 16th in Riyadh. It would be more interesting for fans to see Ramirez run it back with Billiam-Smith than fighting the fossil Dorticos. At least with Billiam-Smith, fans would be seeing an entertaining war for as long as it lasts.

David Benavidez mentioned recently that he would move up to cruiserweight to challenge Ramirez for his titles if he couldn’t get a shot against the winner of the Dmitry Bivol vs. Artur Beterbiev trilogy. We’ll see if that happens because whoever emerges as the winner of that fight might not want to tangle with Benavidez because he’s hard work.

“Sources: On June 28th will be the fight between the unified [WBA and WBO] cruiserweight champion, Mexican Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez, and the Cuban challenger [#1 WBA-ranked] Yuniel Dorticos,” said Salvador Rodriguez on X.