Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Frenzied Save Mart Crowd Helps Propel Ramirez to Comeback Win
GV-Wire-1
By gvwire
Published 6 years ago on
February 12, 2019

Share

Jose Ramirez dug deep Sunday night to retain his world title belt and preserve his undefeated record.
Sensing that he needed to do a lot more to keep his World Boxing Council 140-pound crown, Ramirez dominated the second half of the bout in a narrow 12-round victory over southpaw challenger Jose “Chon” Zepeda.
Ramirez’s furious rally led to a dramatic reading of the scorecards for ESPN ‘s national audience and a sold-out crowd of 14,034 at the Save Mart Center.
While judge Rey Danseco called it a draw (114-114), the two other judges, Chris Tellez (116-112) and Glenn Trowbridge (115-113) scored Ramirez as the winner. All three judges awarded Ramirez the final round.

This Time, Roach Is in Opponent’s Corner

Ramirez had to overcome Zepeda’s skills and courage — and the presence of his former trainer, Hall of Famer Freddie Roach, in the opponent’s corner — in the toughest test of his career.
Roach prepped Ramirez and was in his corner when Ramirez claimed the title by out-pointing Amir Imam last March. But Ramirez then hooked up with trainer Robert Garcia after that.

Both Boxers Say Crowd Was a Factor

Afterward, the Valley native said that his cheering fans helped him in his second successful WBC super-lightweight title defense. His pro record is unblemished at 24-0.
“I felt very motivated by the crowd cheering me on” Ramirez said.
Zepeda (30-2, 25 knockouts), who was born in Long Beach and lives in La Puente, acknowledged that the crowd appeared to fuel Ramirez’s comeback. But he also said that Ramirez simply had more stamina than he did.
“Jose Ramirez, I think his people helped him a little bit,” Zepeda said. “If it were me and my people were cheering me, I would have had a little extra motivation. A little bit, at least. But he’s a tough fighter. I knew I had to come in here with conditioning and yeah, I think maybe that’s what it was: I was a little short on conditioning.”

What’s Next for Ramirez?

As for what might be next in his career, Ramirez afterward sounded more inclined to try and unify the 140-pound crown than to move up to the 147-pound welterweight division.
The other 140-pound titleholders are Maurice Hooker (WBO), Ivan Baranchyk (IBF), and Kiryl Relikh (WBA).  Ramirez noted that he doesn’t have difficulty making the 140-pound weight limit.

CompuBox Numbers Favor Ramirez

According to CompuBox, the 26-year-old Ramirez threw more punches (622-601) and landed more punches (200-149) than his opponent, thus backing up the majority verdict. Ramirez also had the clear edge in power punches, connecting on 172 compared to Zepeda’s 110.
Ramirez built his comeback on a combination of body shots and big hits to Zepeda’s chin.
“He was very tough, very crafty,” Ramirez said. “It took me a while to close the distance. It was a very close fight.”

After #RamirezZepeda, @CrystinaPoncher spoke with @RAMIREZBOXING about the challenges he had to overcome in the fight and what he wants to do next. pic.twitter.com/vBZcgdhSKc

— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) February 11, 2019

DON'T MISS

Here’s What We Know About a Commuter Plane Crash in Alaska That Killed 10 People

DON'T MISS

Trump’s 3rd Week: More Executive Orders, a Trade War That Wasn’t, and a Mideast Jolt

DON'T MISS

UMass Will Pay Student Who Made Half-Court Shot $10,000 Even Though His Foot Was on Line

DON'T MISS

Trump Is Signing Up Local Law Officers to Help With Immigration Enforcement

DON'T MISS

Judge Blocks Trump From Placing Thousands of USAID Workers on Leave

DON'T MISS

Federal Judge Blocks Musk’s DOGE From Accessing Sensitive Treasury Department Data

DON'T MISS

Rookies for Eagles and Chiefs Could Play a Key Role in the Super Bowl

DON'T MISS

Sony PlayStation Network Outage Enrages Gamers Around the World

DON'T MISS

Trump Says He’s Firing Kennedy Center Board Members, Naming Himself Chairman

DON'T MISS

PJ Pickles, the Pajama-Clad Pup, Want to Join Your Loving Home

UP NEXT

Rookies for Eagles and Chiefs Could Play a Key Role in the Super Bowl

UP NEXT

PJ Pickles, the Pajama-Clad Pup, Want to Join Your Loving Home

UP NEXT

Rabies Detected in Fresno, Reedley. Fresno County Urges Caution Around Wild, Stray Animals

UP NEXT

Fresno Police Seek Public’s Help in Locating Missing 75-Year-Old Man

UP NEXT

Fresno Students Walk Out of Class to Protest Deportations

UP NEXT

Donation to Food Bank to Provide 1.3M Meals to Western Fresno County

UP NEXT

Fresno Mission Opens Second Thrift Store Supporting Homeless, Recovering Addicts

UP NEXT

Driver Facing DUI, Drug, and Gun Charges After Pursuit in Visalia

UP NEXT

Police Search for Missing Fresno Man Last Seen in Bay Area

UP NEXT

Spring Training Preview: Dodgers Are Favored to Be MLB’s First Repeat Champion

Trump Is Signing Up Local Law Officers to Help With Immigration Enforcement

3 hours ago

Judge Blocks Trump From Placing Thousands of USAID Workers on Leave

3 hours ago

Federal Judge Blocks Musk’s DOGE From Accessing Sensitive Treasury Department Data

3 hours ago

Rookies for Eagles and Chiefs Could Play a Key Role in the Super Bowl

3 hours ago

Sony PlayStation Network Outage Enrages Gamers Around the World

3 hours ago

Trump Says He’s Firing Kennedy Center Board Members, Naming Himself Chairman

3 hours ago

PJ Pickles, the Pajama-Clad Pup, Want to Join Your Loving Home

4 hours ago

Newsom Signs $50M Plan to Battle Trump Policies, Support Immigrants

19 hours ago

Fresno Students Entering the Work World Need Your Help to ‘Dress the Part’

19 hours ago

Hanford Shooting Leaves One Dead, Another in Critical Condition

19 hours ago

Here’s What We Know About a Commuter Plane Crash in Alaska That Killed 10 People

JUNEAU, Alaska — Authorities are working to recover the wreckage of a plane crash in western Alaska that killed 10 people while investigator...

9 seconds ago

9 seconds ago

Here’s What We Know About a Commuter Plane Crash in Alaska That Killed 10 People

1 hour ago

Trump’s 3rd Week: More Executive Orders, a Trade War That Wasn’t, and a Mideast Jolt

2 hours ago

UMass Will Pay Student Who Made Half-Court Shot $10,000 Even Though His Foot Was on Line

3 hours ago

Trump Is Signing Up Local Law Officers to Help With Immigration Enforcement

3 hours ago

Judge Blocks Trump From Placing Thousands of USAID Workers on Leave

3 hours ago

Federal Judge Blocks Musk’s DOGE From Accessing Sensitive Treasury Department Data

3 hours ago

Rookies for Eagles and Chiefs Could Play a Key Role in the Super Bowl

3 hours ago

Sony PlayStation Network Outage Enrages Gamers Around the World

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend