Unified cruiserweight titleholder Gilberto Ramirez has big plans for his 2025, and he just may have put himself in a position to make them all happen.
Mexico’s Ramirez, 47-1 (30 KOs), outdueled Britain’s Chris Billam-Smith, now 20-2 (13 KOs), in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in November en route to a unanimous decision win. He added Billam-Smith’s WBO cruiserweight belt to his own WBA title and has his sights set on acquiring the division’s two remaining belts in the months ahead.
“I’m excited to be in this position, but the job is not done yet,” Ramirez said. “My goal has always been to leave a legacy in this sport, and I’m looking forward to becoming an undisputed champion this year.”
The win over Billam-Smith was something of a culmination of Ramirez building himself back up after a unanimous decision loss to Dmitry Bivol in 2022, back when Bivol was still a light heavyweight titleholder and Ramirez was still competing at 175lbs.
Ramirez has since moved up in weight and taken unanimous decisions over former light heavyweight titleholder Joe Smith Jnr, the previously unbeaten Arsen Goulamirian for the WBA title, and finally Billam-Smith.
Who will be next for “Zurdo” is an open question – even to him. Although the other cruiserweight belts are in the possession of Badou Jack (WBC) and Jai Opetaia (IBF), Ramirez knows the usual politics of boxing could make unification difficult, if not impossible. At age 33, he has other ambitions and limited time to fulfill them.
“Many options have been presented to my team and I, from [Yuniel] Dorticos to Badou Jack and Jai Opetaia,” Ramirez said. “We’ll just have to see what the future holds.”
Opetaia, 26-0 (20 KOs), will defend his belt at home against David Nyika on Wednesday in Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia. Jack is seeking to return after nearly two years away and was recently reinstated from being the WBC’s “champion in recess.”
If the other cruiserweight beltholders and the mentioned contenders fail to work out as opponents, then Ramirez seems open to modifying his plans.
He has discussed moving up to bridgerweight (a division recognized only by the WBA and WBC, topping out at 224 pounds) and eventually heavyweight, and there is always the possibility of a key figure meeting Ramirez precisely where he’s at now: former undisputed cruiserweight champion and former undisputed (and still lineal and unified) heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk.
In a press release issued by Zurdo Promotions on Monday, Usyk was mentioned among the “options” for Ramirez in 2025. Also mentioned: David Benavidez (set to face David Morrell Jnr on February 1) and even Jake Paul.
The subtext: If the stars don’t align for Ramirez to take a crack at unifying the belts at cruiserweight, he certainly plans to be well compensated for his efforts in 2025.
Read the full article here
