Raymond Ford wants a rematch with Nick Ball 130 after losing his WBA featherweight title to him last Saturday night by a twelve-round split decision in Riyadh.
Ford (15-1-1, 8 KOs) says he’s not chasing a rematch against Ball (20-0-1, 11 KOs) now because he’s not going to kill himself to drain down to 126 to make the fight happen.
The Camden, New Jersey native, Ford, 25, wanted up to super featherweight after defeated Otabek Kholmatov by a twelfth round knockout last March to win the WBA 126-lb title, but he was offered the fight against Ball, so he stayed in the division to defend against him with the idea of moving up afterward.
Ball will likely stay at featherweight and defend his newly won WBA title rather than move up to 130. It doesn’t make sense for him to move up until he starts having problems making weight, especially now that he’s a world champion.
“I wasn’t focused on whether I was winning rounds. I was just trying to get the job done. After a certain point in time, I just wanted to stop him. I wasn’t worried about the scorecards. My plan was on getting him out of there,” said Ford to Millcity Boxing talking about his fight against Nick Ball last Saturday night.
“It wasn’t the game plan for me to get him out of there. It happened when he hit me with a good shot. That’s when I put it in my head, ‘I’m going to f*** him up and stop him.’ I thought he was better than I expected. He was more tricky.
“It wasn’t my best [performance], but as far as at the moment-wise, that’s #1 for sure. I’m trying to fight [WBC super featherweight champion O’Shaquie] Foster, but he doesn’t want to fight me, though. His energy is not coming off like he wants to fight me,” said Ford.
Ford’s Frustrations with Weight and Desire for Rematch
If nick ball move up I’ll be chasing a rematch, I’m not chasing it now cause I’m not killing myself to make 126 no more. I know what I can do and I know I’m still that guy 💯
— Raymond Ford (@raysavage856) June 2, 2024
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