Jose Ramirez & Vergil Ortiz Take Care of Business
In his first match in just over a year, welterweight Jose Carlos “Jaguar” Ramirez (29-1, 18 KO’s) defeated seasoned pro Rances “Kid Blast” Barthelemy (30-3-1, 15 KO’s) by way of unanimous decision.
Unsurprisingly, the tenacious Ramirez came out strong with the clang of the opening bell and pursued Barthelemy behind a heated body attack. At the outset, Kid Blast handled himself well and nonchalantly. Both men went to the body well. In the third round it appeared that Barthelemy was robbed of a knock down after hurting Ramirez with a hard straight left.
Jaguar would go down a few moments later, but Kid Blast hurt himself by hitting Ramirez numerous times when he was on one knee. Referee Jack Reiss would chew him out for this and ruled the knockdown a push. Yet, outside of hurting Ramirez again in the fourth, Barthelemy for the most part shelled up and slinked along the ropes for the entire second half of the fight.
He would throw pot shots here and there, but essentially the Cuban went into survival mode. As a result, when the scorecards were read, Ramirez won a unanimous decision victory to the tune of 119-109 (twice) and 119-110. This was a solid win in his debut match with his new Golden Boy Promotion backers.
VERGIL ORTIZ JR V THOMAS DULORME
With a big match against Tim Tszyu looming, top super welterweight contender Vergil Ortiz Jr (21-0, 21 KO’s) took care of business in clinical fashion. As a result, the Texan boxer stopped veteran Thomas Dulorme (26-7-1, 17 KO’s) in the first round of their duel by way of knockout.
To begin the match, Dulorme came out and set a serious tone with the seek-and-destroy brand of punches he was throwing. In response, Ortiz Jr kept his composure and threw fewer shots but not with much less intensity as Dulorme. In a swift change in fortune, Ortiz Jr punctured his opponent with a stifling left hook to the body. The shot instantly dropped Dulorme who curled up and writhed in agony like a prison snitch gut stabbed in the yard.
Referee Thomas Taylor would administer the full ten count, but the pain of the blow prevented Dulorme from finding his feet. With the victory, Ortiz Jr secured a September showdown with former WBO junior middleweight champion Tim Tszyu. On paper, that should be one thrilling duel.
