Saturday 16th November
Gilberto Ramirez v Chris Billam Smith
Looking forward to this unification fight i have to say and from what i can see its definatley a 50/50 match up with either fighter having the potential to come out on top. Ramirez (47 Fights - 46 Wins (30 KOs) - 1 Loss) has lost just the one bout to date and that was against P4P fighter Dmitry Bivol back in November of 2022 , so no great shame in that tbh , he was totally outboxed in that one in all fairness and since that loss he has moved up to the Cruiserweight division where he has had two fights to date , first one against banger Joe Smith Jr , who he beat by UD and then in his only fight this year he beat Armenian/Frenchman Arsen Goulamirian , again winning by UD and in the process handing him his first pro loss to date as well as relieving him of his WBA (Super) Cruiserweight title .. Ramirez put in a solid show in that bout but , for me , still didnt look as dangerous as he had done when at Light Heavyweight. Hes a come forward type of fighter who likes to trade and throw hands. Billam Smith (21 Fights - 20 Wins (13 KOs) - 1 Loss) only has the one loss on his record as well , to Richard Riakporhe back in 2019 , which he avenged back in June of this year when he beat him by unanimous decision. He beat Lawrence Okolie by MD in 2023 to take the WBO Cruiserweight title and has successfully defended it twice since then , the aformentioned Riakporhe fight and before that he stopped the Polish fighter Mateusz Masternak in the eight round. I think on the whole Ramirez has fought the better opposition to date , and despite being younger than Billam Smith has more miles on the clock. Billam Smith looks to be the more technical of the two although Ramirez has looked better , skill wise , in his last few fights , and i think hes faster with his both his hands and his feet than CBS , whilst Billam Smith probably showed his best when beating Riakporhe last time , and his power and heart has helped him achieve what he has so far. I think if he fights Ramirez like he did Riakporhe , tie him up , work on the inside then he could drain Ramirez and get the win on points because from everything ive seen so far suggests , to me anyway , that its not likely that he stops him. If he can get him on the inside then i think he makes him uncomfortable as hes naturally bigger and the clinching , holding , trading .. will all take their toll on Ramirez. Initially i favoured Ramirez to win this but the more i look at the fight that more i think CBS pulls out that little bit more thats needed and comes away with both the belts , very probably by points in a hard fought fight.
Chris Billam Smith To Win
William Zepeda v Tevin Farmer
William Zepeda (31 Fights - 31 Wins (27 KOs)) is the number one contender for all four governing bodies (think thats a first in the four belt era , not 100% though) and comes into this on a roll having stopped his last four opponents , two of those being this year , and the first one was Britains Maxi Hughes who retired in the fourth round after a one sided beatdown , and last time he despatched Giovanna Cabrera in the third round. He was looking for a match up with Shakur Stevenson but before that happens he has to get past Tevin Farmer (41 Fights - 33 Wins 8 KOs) - 6 Losses - 1 Draw - 1 No Contest) , a past world champion whose looking to get back to winning ways after a last time loss to Raymond Muratalla in a closely fought fight. Despite the losses on his record Farmer is no back number and Zepeda shouldnt be over looking him imho , hes a decent fighter with a solid skillset. Zepeda is the bigger , heavier man with a reach and height advantage and hes gotta use those to his advantage here , i think hes gotta overwhelm Farmer , try and gas him out and gradually break him down from the mid rounds onwards , Zepeda is constantly throwing (1000+ a fight) , and if Farmer is to stand any chance he has to upset Zepedas rhythm , maybe catch him with a big shot to let him know that hes in the fight and he cant be ignored. Zepeda will be a big favourite in this , for good reason , but he cant afford any slip ups as if he does the Stevenson fight goes down the swanney and then where does he go ? .. so hes gonna have to be focussed and remain on point throughout the fight. I honestly cant see past Zepeda in this one , stronger and hes bigger , high octane work rate , throws alot of punches including hard body shots which are bound to take their toll on Farmer , and its in my mind that he had a hard fight last time against Muratalla and hes up against a relentless opponent in Zepeda whose gonna come after him from the first bell and its gonna be difficult to keep him away for the entire fight. Zepeda knows this is a must win for him and i think he does it , could go the distance as Farmer isnt lacking in heart but i think Zepeda stops him.
William Zepeda To Win .. By Stoppage
Jose Ramirez v Arnold Barboza Jr
Decent bout this one with the undefeated and current WBO Inter Continental Light Welterweight holder Barboza Jr (30 Fights - 30 Wins (11 KOs)) takes on former unified world champion Jose Ramirez (30 Fights - 29 Wins (18 KOs) - 1 Loss) colliding for the WBO mandatory number one slot and its a wanna win for both fighters. Barboza Jr won a split decision against Sean McComb last time , back in April , and this will be the first time hes fought at this sort of level whereas Ramirez has been there and done it , he beat Rances Barthelemy last time (April this year) by unanimous decision. Theyre the same age and this one is a 50/50 fight as far as im concerned , a true pick em fight ! As ive already said Barboza Jr finds himself in new territory and it'll be interesting to see how he copes , my guess is he'll be okay but you never know .. Ramirez has been here before and in all fairness will probably be Barbozas toughest test to date. Both of them are gonna be up for this and it really should be a cracking fight , Ramirez is more of the puncher out of the two but its more of a wear you down and stop you kind of power than a clean one punch kind of power and i think his ring IQ is better as well , im leaning towards Ramirez coming out on top here mainly because of what ive just said but also because of his experience and having been here before and seen/done it all. Im not 100% as Barboza Jr is more than capable of taking it but im gonna tentatively side with Ramirez.
Jose Ramirez To Win