WBA cruiserweight champion Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramírez (46-1, 30 KOs) takes on WBO cruiserweight title holder Chris “The Gentleman” Billam-Smith (20-1, 13 KOs) in a twelve-round cruiserweight unification bout at the Venue Riyadh Season in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on November 16th. The main event will be streamed live on DAZN.
Ramírez obtained the WBA cruiserweight title in March of this year with a dominating, one-sided, twelve-round unanimous decision (118-110 on all three judges’ scorecards) over undefeated Arsen “Feroz” Goulamirian, who was making his fourth world title defense.
With the victory, Ramírez became the first-ever Mexican cruiserweight title holder and a two-division world champion (he was a world title holder in the super middleweight division).
To make this unification fight with Billam-Smith, Ramírez agreed to a deal with his mandatory challenger and former world champion Yuniel Dorticos (27-2, 25 KOs) to step aside their fight in exchange for a fee and the promise that he would get the next fight at the winner of this bout.
The thirty-three-year-old southpaw boxer from Mazatlan, Sinaloa, Mexico, has two in a row (the other, a ten-round unanimous decision over former light heavyweight world champion Joe Smith Jr., in which he won every round except one on all three judges’ scorecards) following his lone loss to pound-for-pound one of the best boxers in the world, then-unbeaten IBO light heavyweight title holder Dmitry Bivol.
Billam-Smith, a thirty-four-year-old orthodox fighter from Bournemouth, Dorset, United Kingdom, has won eleven in a row and will defend his world title for the third time. In his last outing, he avenged his only loss to undefeated countryman Richard Riakporhe via a twelve-round unanimous decision. He also scored an eighth-round technical knockout against Mateusz Masternak. Billam-Smith won the WBO title with a twelve-round majority decision over unbeaten Lawrence Okolie in May 2023.
Ramírez defeated former three-time, two-division world titleholder Arthur Abraham in April 2016 for the WBO super middleweight title, making him the second Mexican fighter to win a world title above the middleweight division (Saul “Canelo” Alvarez is the other).
He made five world title defenses over two and a half years (three of which were against unbeaten fighters), then moved up to the light heavyweight division and won five consecutive bouts via knockout. After losing to Bivol, he climbed up another weight class to cruiserweight.
Outside the boxing ring, Ramírez has been extremely busy. He started his own promotional company Zurdo Promotions, which has promoted several boxing cards and signed numerous fighters, including four up-and-coming prospects: undefeated super lightweight Carlos Nava (15-0-1, 9 KOs), recently signed unbeaten super middleweight Darius “DFG” Fulghum (13-0, 11 KOs), super flyweight John “Scrappy” Ramirez (13-1, 9 KOs), and light heavyweight Kareem Hackett (12-1, 6 KOs).
Ramírez is looking to promote his next fight card in December. He became a principal member of 3 Point Management (3PM), which opened a 6,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art boxing gym, Brickhouse Boxing Club, in North Hollywood, California, in May 2021.
At the Brickhouse Boxing Club, he trains for his upcoming fights with head trainer Julian Chua, trainer and former heavyweight contender Malik Scott, and strength and conditioning coach Chris Wong.
Ramírez was gracious enough to take time out of his busy training camp to discuss his upcoming fight against Billam-Smith, how he sees this bout playing out, winning a world title in another weight class, fighting in Saudi Arabia for the first time, and much more.
James Stillerman: How is training camp going for your upcoming fight against Billam-Smith?
Gilberto Ramírez: My training camp is going well. I am excited for this fight and the chance to unify the belts in this division.
James Stillerman: What kind of fight do you expect from Billam-Smith?
Gilberto Ramírez: He will try to come forward and fight on the inside. I expect the best from him in the ring, but I will knock him out. I have better skills than he does. I will prove to myself and everyone else that I am the best in the cruiserweight division and the sport.
James Stillerman: What is it like to be in a unification fight in just your third bout at cruiserweight?
Gilberto Ramírez: It was amazing that this fight came together so quickly. We both wanted to fight one another, so it was easy. This is what it should be like in this sport, with one champion fighting another champion. Eventually, I want to be the undisputed cruiserweight champion [WBC cruiserweight champion is Norair (Noel Gevor) Mikaeljan, and the IBF cruiserweight title holder is Jai Opetaia].
James Stillerman: What are your thoughts on how you performed in your last bout against Goulamirian?
Gilberto Ramírez: It was an excellent performance for me. I put a lot of hard work into my training camp, which showed in that fight. We had a great game plan going into this fight, and I followed it, so my hand got raised at the end of the bout. It was also a great night for me because I won a belt in my second division, and for all the Mexican fans, as I became the first-ever Mexican cruiserweight champion.
James Stillerman: How do you feel fighting at cruiserweight?
Gilberto Ramírez: I feel fantastic fighting in this weight class. This is a much better division for me. I struggled to make weight at 175 pounds. My last bout at light heavyweight was against [former world title challenger Gabriel] Rosado, but I could not make weight, so the fight had to be canceled.
James Stillerman: What will it be like to fight in Saudi Arabia?
Gilberto Ramírez: It will be a pleasure to fight there. I have never fought in Saudi Arabia. I am looking forward to seeing their culture and meeting people. This will be a massive fight, and many fans are traveling there to watch our fight.
James Stillerman: What has it been like to be promoted by Golden Boy Promotions?
Gilberto Ramírez: They have treated me so well. It feels like a family to me. They have done a great job getting me significant fights over the last few years.
For more information about his boxing career and upcoming fights, friend him on X @ZurdoRamirezz and @ZurdoPromotions, on Instagram @zurdoramirez and @zurdopromotions, and visit his website at www.zurdopromotions.com.
