By Sev Sarkisian: Popular and fan friendly super lightweight contender Jose Ramirez (21-0 16
KO’s) will be making his return to the ring on Saturday, March 17th in The Theater at Madison
Square Garden in New York City. He will be taking on fellow contender Amir Imam (21-1
18KO’s) for the vacant WBC super lightweight world title that Terrance Crawford recently
vacated. This fight will be televised live on ESPN and is promoted by Top Rank in association
with Don King Promotions.
Jose Ramirez is a former Olympian who represented the USA at the 2012 summer Olympics. He
is extremely big for the super lightweight division standing 5’10 in height and possessing a 72 ½
inch reach according to box rec. He is coming off a big impressive win against the then
undefeated Mike Reed in which he stopped in 2 rounds in a world title eliminator bout back in
November. Jose Ramirez has the ability to apply pressure and throws punches in bunches
putting his opponents on the back foot, but he also has the ability and the skills to use his reach
and work off his jab and box. He is also trained by hall of fame trainer Freddy Roach and has
been more disciplined than ever over the past few years when it comes to his training and craft.
Amir Imam, on the other hand, is listed at 5 10 ½ in height and possesses a 74-inch reach
according to boxrec. He is also very big for the super lightweight division and has decent boxing
skill and ability. His most notable win is over current welterweight contender Yordenis Ugas
which looks better as time goes by given Ugas’s continued success and current status in the
sport. However, despite having good boxing skills and being able to work off the jab nicely,
Imam has shown to be vulnerable against consistent pressure which was evident in his fight
with Adrien Granados. Imam needs space and a slow pace in order to be effective and so I’m
guessing that Freddy Roach has prepared Ramirez to apply steady pressure and throw a high
volume of punches to win this fight.
I personally can’t wait to see this battle of two world-class super lightweights going at it and
look forward to covering this fight live at Madison Square Garden. It is the classic style match-up
of boxer versus pressure and it should definitely be a fun one for as long as it lasts!