Jesus Ramos targeting KO of Jeison Rosario on February 1

Jesus Ramos isn’t just confident of an emphatic win over Jeison Rosario on February 1, he says he’s targeting an early knockout.

Ramos, 23, is starting 2025 in positive fashion by fighting the 29-year-old former IBF junior-middleweight titlist at 160lbs. Their bout is on course to be on the undercard of David Benavidez-David Morrell at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on February 1.

The fight promises to be a slugfest, and Ramos, 21-1 (17 KOs), expects to end it abruptly.

“That’s what I’m looking for,” Ramos told BoxingScene. “It’s not something I like to call out or anything, but that’s what I’m training for. That’s something that I’m working on every day. I’m constantly in the gym with that on my mind and that’s the plan.

“The earlier I get the knockout, the better, so I can enjoy the rest of the card. It’s gonna be a great card so I’m excited for that too.”

In September 2023, Ramos suffered his first loss to Erickson Lubin over 12 rounds at junior middleweight. Eight months later he returned with a big win, when stopping Johan Gonzalez in nine.

According to Ramos, returning to winning ways against Gonzalez followed him having learned from his mistakes against Lubin.

“It was definitely really important to me, personally,” he continued. “I felt like I needed that win to kinda just come back after everything. It was a lot of controversy and a lot of mixed emotions. At the end of the day, I would’ve rather preferred losing fairly.

“It was just a lot of anger. I didn’t feel like I had lost that fight to Lubin, and it was just, like I said, a lot of emotions. And coming back from that fight, I felt I needed that win against Gonzalez. I needed that knockout to prove that to myself and the boxing world.”

The Dominican Republic’s Rosario, 24-4-2 (18 KOs), is coming off a split draw with Jarrett Hurd in August. Rosario won the IBF 154lbs belt against Julian Williams in 2020. He also fought and lost to the likes of Jermell Charlo and Lubin.

Ramos, regardless, believes that Rosario is past his prime.

“I feel like over the years, he has been on a decline,” he said. “So, we’ll see how he comes out. February 1, I feel like his back is against the wall.This is a do-or-die fight for him. So, I feel like he’s gonna be really hungry. 

“He’s gonna come out prepared and I honestly expect the best of Jason Rosario on February 1. It’s a huge opportunity for him.”

Bernard Neequaye is a sports journalist with a specialty in boxing coverage. He wrote a boxing column titled “From The Ringside” in his native Ghana for years. He can be reached on X (formerly Twitter) at @BernardNeequaye, LinkedIn at Bernard Neequaye and through email at [email protected].