Dmitry Bivol stunned the boxing world with his masterful decision victory over pound-for-pound superstar Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in May.
The fact the WBA light-heavyweight champion’s victory was viewed in some quarters as such a major upset did his talents a disservice. Now, the unbeaten Russian fighter will put his belt on the line against another Mexican.
Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez is also yet to taste defeat as a professional. An imposing 6ft 2 ½ ins southpaw, Ramirez will pose an intriguingly different challenge to the one Bivol faced against his illustrious countryman.
Here’s all you need to know about a stacked night of world championship boxing.
WATCH: Bivol vs. Ramirez live on DAZN
When is Dmitry Bivol vs. Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez?
Bivol and Ramirez will trade leather on Saturday, November 5.
Where is the Dmitry Bivol vs. Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez fight taking place?
The bout will be staged at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
The fight card is the first instalment of the Champions Series, a collaboration between promoter Matchroom and the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi.
Big fight nights in the Middle East have become an increasingly prominent feature of the modern boxing landscape, most notable with Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight title rematches against Andy Ruiz Jr and Oleksandr Usyk in Saudi Arabia.
Dubai has also hosted a number of fight nights, including Jamel Herring’s WBO super-featherweight title showdown with Carl Frampton in April 2021, but this will be the first sign world championship boxing has arrived in the UAE capital.
How to watch Dmitry Bivol vs. Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez
Bivol vs. Ramirez will be shown by DAZN globally.
WATCH: Bivol vs. Ramirez live on DAZN
Who is on the Dmitry Bivol vs. Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez undercard?
- Chantelle Cameron (c) vs. Jessica McCaskilll; IBF, WBC, WBA (vacant), WBO (vacant) super-lightweight titles.
- Shavkatdzhon Rakhimov vs. Zelfa Barrett; IBF super-featherweight title (vacant)
- Galal Yafai (c) vs. Gohan Rodriguez Garcia WBC International flyweight title.
- Kal Yafai vs. Jerald Paclar; bantamweight contest
- Campbell Hatton vs. Denis Bartos; lightweight contest
- Aqib Fiaz vs. Diego Valiterra; super-featherweight contest
MORE: Campbell Hatton on ‘surreal’ sparring with dad Ricky Hatton and his title ambitions
Dmitry Bivol career record, titles won
After a decorated amateur career comprising more than 300 bouts, Bivol turned professional in 2014. He won his first six fights inside the distance, collecting the WBA inter-continental title at 175lbs in the fifth – a fourth-round stoppage of Jackson Dos Santos.
In his seventh contest, Bivol was taken the 12-round distance for the first time by Felix Valera, who was also undefeated at the time. He prevailed via a wide unanimous decision to lift the WBA interim light-heavyweight title.
After three defences of that belt and a fourth-round knockout of Cedric Agnew in a non-title bout on the undercard of Andre Ward’s rematch win over Sergey Kovalev in June 2017, Bivol was upgraded to full WBA champion.
If such a crowning felt a little unsatisfactory for one of boxing’s rising stars, he made sure to rubber-stamp his status in emphatic fashion with a stunning one-punch knockout of Australian Trent Broadhurst in Monte Carlo.
Bivol stopped Sullivan Barrera in the final round in his first defence at Madison Square Garden in March 2018, a victory that remains his most recent TKO triumph.
Issac Chilemba, Jean Pascal, Joe Smith Jr, Gilbert Castillo Rivera, Craig Richards and Umar Salamov all failed to crack the code and trudged off with unanimous losses on the scorecards. In that respect, they were no different to Canelo Alvarez, as he was humbled on Bivol’s route to 20-0 (11 KOs).
Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez career record, titles won
Ramirez turned professional in August 2009, two months after his 18th birthday. His first three fights, all early knockouts, came in the space of three weeks.
In his 15th outing, Zurdo stopped Rogelio Medina in the sixth round of a scheduled 10 to win the vacant WBC youth middleweight title. He made six defences before stepping up to super-middleweight in 2013.
Ramirez beat Giovanni Lorenzo in his first title fight in the 168lbs division, flooring him three times in a fifth-round TKO to lift the North American Boxing Federation and WBO NABO belts.
In April, 2016, with his record at 34-0, Ramirez made history as the first Mexican to win a super-middleweight world title when he beat WBO champion Arthur Abraham via a shutout unanimous decision in Las Vegas.
Following a scrappy first defence against Maksym Bursak, where his opponent was deducted two points for excessive holding, Ramirez won a narrow decision over then-unbeaten American Jesse Hart, where a second-round uppercut knockdown proved crucial.
Wins over Habib Ahmed and Roamer Alexis Angulo followed before a rematch with Hart in December 2018, 15 months on from their initial encounter. Again, Zurdo prevailed in a closely contested encounter, winning by 115-113 on two cards with the third judge scoring it a draw.
Ramirez has since campaigned at light-heavyweight and boasts an unbroken run of five wins inside the distance at the weight, moving him to 44-0 (30 KOs). This streak includes a four-round body shot demolition of former Bivol foe Barrera.
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