Josh Taylor Eagerly Looking Forward to His Upcoming Fight Against Jose Ramirez
IBF/WBA World Junior Welterweight champion Josh Taylor (17-0, 13 KOs) and WBC/WBO World Junior Welterweight champ Jose Ramirez (26-0, 17 KOs) are the two best fighters at 140 pounds. They will face each other later in 2021 for the undisputed junior welterweight championship of the world.
Appearing as a guest on the TalkSPORT Fight Night Boxingpodcast, Taylor talked about his upcoming fight against Ramirez. Believing he is the superior all-around fighter, the 30-year-old from Edinburgh, Scotland is confident of victory.
“I do 100 percent believe I’m going to win this fight. I’ve watched Ramirez a hell of a lot. I just don’t see anything that he does better than me at all in every department. I’m better than him in every department.
Boxing IQ certainly, it’s just no question. Boxing on the back foot, boxing on the front foot, I believe I’m a better fighter than him as well. I don’t believe his fighting inside game is that good either. You know I just think I got the better of him in every department. I think it’s my fight to lose.
I’m not going to sit here and disrespect him. I think he’s a very good fighter. You don’t become a unified world champion for no reason. I’m not going to sit here and slag him off because I got respect for him. But I just believe I win that fight hands down”.
Taylor said, should he defeat Ramirez, he has nothing more to prove at junior welterweight. His next goal would be a move up to the welterweight division.
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Looking long term, the Scottish southpaw envisions himself in the ring with the likes of unified IBF/WBC World Welterweight Champion Errol Spence Jr and WBO World 147-pound champion Terence Crawford. He described facing them as ‘legacy-defining’.
Great Britain is under heavy regulations and restrictions due to COVID-19. As a result, Taylor v Ramirez is expected to take place in the United States. The targeted date is early May. Taylor has previously fought in the States in 2016 and 2017. He looks forward to the challenge of fighting away from home.
“I prefer this fight to be in America because it’s the fight that dreams are made of. When you’re thinking and visualizing becoming a world champion, it’s always fighting in America in the MGM Grand with your name up in lights. Either the MGM Grand or Madison Square Garden, the mecca of boxing.
You dream of these places. So, for it to happen in Las Vegas or Madison Square Garden, it’s a dream fight. I’m absolutely delighted that it will be in America most likely.
I just hope that the lockdown restrictions are eased up and I can take a bit of traveling support with me as well. It would be awesome to bring fans with me as well to that fight.”
Taylor v Ramirez is a fight receiving little hype within boxing mainstream circles. All the talk about a showdown between heavyweight champions Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury has grabbed much of their attention.
However, real boxing fans understand the significance. The winner becomes an undisputed champion and elevates into elite status. Taylor wants to be that guy on the sport’s pantheon of modern-day greats.
By: Michael Wilson Jr.
