Jose Ramirez face Antonio Orozco on September 14th in Fresno, Ca
photo: Lukie Ketelle
Jose Ramirez will finally get to defend his WBC super lightweight title in Fresno, CA as his first title defense will take place on September 14th against Antonio “Relentless” Orozco at the Save Mart Center.
Ramirez hoped to defend his title on July 7th at the same venue, but his opponent Danny O’Connor was hospitalized after being sent to the hospital for dehydration before the weigh-ins. Ramirez, the pride of Avenal, Ca, was disappointed after defeating Amir Imam in New York City at Madison Square Garden in March to win the title and wanted to bring the world title back to his hometown.
“We have an undefeated fighter in front of us, and I will get myself prepared to put on a great show…it’s an honor to fight in Fresno, and we owe it to the fans after what happened last time. We’re going to make this show bigger and better. The fans of Fresno and the Central Valley have supported me my entire career, and I am honored to return home to defend the WBC world championship.” said WBC super lightweight champion, Jose Ramirez.
Ramirez’s foe, Orozco is a fighter who hasn’t quite gotten into the elite level as after stopping KeAndre Gibson in a spectacular fashion, Orozco no-showed a weigh-in for an HBO bout that seemingly stalled his career. For Orozco, this is an opportunity that he needs to take advantage of.
“The time for me to become world champion is here, and I will do everything possible to take that world title away from Jose Ramirez. I want to thank my manager Frank Espinoza and Golden Boy Promotions for this opportunity, which I will take full advantage of this September. I know that Ramirez is a tough fighter and that I’ll be fighting on enemy turf. But I’m not worried about that. I have all the experience and the skills to score a great victory and leave the ring with the world title around my waist.”
Ramirez and Orozco will headline the ESPN broadcast a day before the major Canelo Alvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin rematch on September 15th in Las Vegas, Nevada. The co-main event is not set, but it is heavily rumored that IBF super flyweight champion Jerwin Ancajas who made history in the same arena earlier this year defending his title against Jonas Sultan, will be the co-main event.
The bout will be televised on ESPN at 7 PM PST/ 10 PM EST with the first bell beginning at around 4:30 PM PST.
The bout is promoted by Top Rank Inc. in association with Golden Boy Promotions with tickets ranging from $150, $90, $60, $35 and $25.
We are being told the event will sell out.
