Dmitry Bivol and members of his team couldn’t help but laugh.
They think it’s ridiculous that Gilberto Ramirez even suggested Bivol ducked him, especially since the unbeaten WBA light heavyweight champion embraced a showdown with the icon considered boxing’s best pound-for-pound prior to Bivol’s victory over him. Bivol addressed Ramirez’s claim during a preview of their fight Saturday night, “Make The Days Count: Dmitry Bivol vs. Zurdo Ramirez,” which is available on DAZN and Matchroom Boxing’s YouTube channel.
“Zurdo, Zurdo,” Bivol said. “He loves to talk too much.”
Bivol’s strength and conditioning coach, Taylor Ramsdell, promptly pointed out that Russia’s Bivol wouldn’t have defended his 175-pound championship against Canelo Alvarez if he were reluctant to square off with Ramirez.
“Of course. Of course. Every fight I was ducking him,” an amused Bivol said. “He told about this many times, but it’s not true. And I know he knows it’s not true, you know? Everyone knows in my team and in his team, too. But he told it.”
Footage of Ramirez telling Bivol to “stop running” following his most recent win, a fourth-round knockout of Dominic Boesel in a WBA elimination match, was shown during “Make The Days Count.”
Eddie Hearn, whose company co-promotes Bivol, explored a bout between Bivol (20-0, 11 KOs) and England’s Joshua Buatsi (16-0, 13 KOs), another fighter Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing represents, after Bivol beat Mexico’s Alvarez (58-2-2, 39 KOs) by unanimous decision in their 12-round match May 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The WBA eventually ordered Bivol to face Ramirez next because the undefeated former WBO 168-pound champion is its mandatory challenger for Bivol’s belt.
Mexico’s Ramirez (44-0, 30 KOs) clarified during the aforementioned preview that it was likely Bivol’s team, not necessarily Bivol himself, that didn’t want Bivol to face a big, strong southpaw.
“Not him,” Ramirez said. “Maybe the team because, as a fighter, we wanna fight. We fight with anyone. That’s what we do. We’re warriors.”
Bivol and Ramirez will meet in a 12-round battle between unbeaten 31-year-old boxers.
DAZN will stream their main event worldwide Saturday from Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. DAZN’s coverage of the Bivol-Ramirez undercard is scheduled to start at 1:30 p.m. ET.
“I know he wanted this fight a long time,” Bivol said. “Me, too. And now it will happen. And I’m glad. He’s a good fighter.”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.