Jose Ramirez will fight with a new promoter (Golden Boy Promotions) for the first time since he turned pro against Rances Barthelemy on Saturday, April 27 at the SaveMart Center in Fresno, California, which will be broadcast by DAZN.
Ramirez (28-1, 18 KOs) has always fought for a bit more than a title, it has been about opportunity. Ramirez is from Avenal, Calif., a town in the Central Valley that has an estimated population of 13,374 as of census report on July 1, 2022.
People don’t typically become celebrities from Avenal. The downtown district has a movie theater – one that will probably premiere as a Jose Ramirez film one day – and that is one of only a few notable features.
In 2019, USA Today labeled Avenal as the 10th-worst city in America. The reasons for such a statement are high unemployment and violent crime. So when Ramirez steps foot in the ring, it seems he takes into account being that young person in a forgotten town in California that looks closer to Midland, Texas than it does California with its beaches and movie stars.
He is one of only three notable people from Avenal, California, according to Wikipedia. The other two being former NFL players, J.D. Williams, and Paul Williams. Ramirez has spent a career fighting for the rights of farm workers he grew up around, but even more so the opportunity for fight fans to watch live bouts and boxers to build their records regionally on his cards.
Now Ramirez is in his final act (or as he calls it his second chapter). In January, he signed with Golden Boy Promotions, leaving his promoter from the beginning of his career, Top Rank. Ramirez is building up to one big night in the future, or at least that seems the hope, and Fresno has always been special to him. It is where he built his name in both the amateurs and the pros and where he became a star when he stopped Mike ‘Yes Indeed’ Reed.
“It is always an honor to fight in the central part of California,” said Ramirez at a press conference in the build-up to the fight. “The small communities, the hard-working communities make Fresno strong. We all work together like a machine. We all move together.”
Ramirez is promoted by the 1992 Gold Medal U.S. Olympian and former world champion Oscar De La Hoya. De La Hoya, who was in attendance for the press conference, noted the following about coming to Fresno with both Ramirez and Vergil Ortiz.
“It will be [a special night of boxing], because all of those people who are out working in the fields, most of them will be inside this arena,” De La Hoya said. “We want to build that next generation of world champions. We want to make sure we pave the way and open up the doors and give them opportunities.”
The fighting pride of Avenal, Ramirez, has put Central California on his back for more than a decade. Club-level shows early in his career were sell-out or near sell-out crowds.
Ramirez started at the West Hills College Golden Eagle Arena in Lemoore, Calif. That was in 2013. He turned pro on the Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez IV card but wanted to voyage back to where he made his bones in the sport – the Central Valley.
After a few fights at the Selland Arena, Ramirez found himself at the SaveMart Center, the big arena attached to Fresno State. Since defeating Johnny Garcia there in 2015, eight of his fights have taken place in the Fresno region. Those in the Central Valley have watched Ramirez evolve and grow and his presence has loomed large.
Each one of his fights could be viewed as a milestone for someone who lives in the region given the signage his fights get thanks to his manager, Rick Mirigian.
“I am happy to be with Golden Boy,” furthered Ramirez. “I can see the energy Oscar [De La Hoya] has – his company has to promote fighters. We want to not just become the best but become stars. We want to leave a big legacy in the sport of boxing. I think that [this is going to be a big part of] the second part of my career, the second chapter of my career.
“There are a lot of great fighters I would love to face. They have the popularity to take it to the next level… I am looking forward to that and becoming a three-time world champion.
Ramirez’s next opponent, Barthelemy (30-2-1, 15 KOs) is a former two-division world champion. He held titles at junior lightweight and lightweight – never at junior welterweight – where this fight will be contested.
Barthelemy has seen a subtle decline since his loss to Kiryl Relikh. The bout was a rematch of a contest he won, but he lost the rematch which was for the WBA junior welterweight world title.
Since that bout he’s 4-1-1, though his loss and draw have painted a vivid picture. His draw to Robert Easter Jr. was painfully dull and he was stopped by undefeated 2016 U.S. Olympian Gary Antuanne Russell. He also had a close majority decision win over Omar Juarez.
Barthelemy hasn’t looked like the unbeatable junior lightweight of prior years and is 37-years-old.
Ramirez is 31, but he has taken some damage in his fights to the point where one might wonder how many big fights he can take.
One thing is for sure and that is Ramirez feels a sense of excitement with a new promoter. Last year he boxed just once, against Richard Commey. That fight also happened the same night David Benavidez defeated Caleb Plant on pay-per-view. Ramirez-Commey was all but out-of-sight, out-of-mind for many fight fans. Ramirez and his team are now hoping for a rebirth in Fresno with a new promoter and on a new network.