Hard-hitting contender Erickson “Hammer” Lubin will look to catapult himself right back to the top of the stacked 154-pound division with an emphatic victory over unbeaten rising sensation Jesus “Mono” Ramos in the Canelo vs. Charlo SHOWTIME PPV co-main event on Saturday, September 30 from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Canelo Promotions will present the Premier Boxing Champions pay-per-view.
“Ramos is nothing that I haven’t seen before, and on fight night, he’s gonna know that I’m the better man,” said Lubin during a short breather from training camp. “He’s a tough southpaw, but I’ve watched enough to dissect him and go out there and execute in the fight. He’s a good fighter, but he’s not perfect. There are a lot of flaws that I can definitely capitalize on and that’s what I’m going to do on September 30.”
Lubin (25-2, 18 KOs) returned from a defeat to Sebastian Fundora in one of 2022’s best fights to stop contender Luis Arias in June and begin another ascent toward a world title shot. Before stepping into the ring for a pivotal matchup on September 30, Lubin spoke extensively about training camp, Ramos, bouncing back from defeat and more:
On his edge in experience and how it could play out in the fight:
“When it comes to ‘A-side’ or ‘B-side’, it doesn’t really matter in this fight. I’m the one with experience. He wants to be in my spot. He’s young, he’s undefeated, he’s been on big undercards and stuff like that. But they must have given him the ‘A-side’ because of his looks or something because I’m really the ‘A-side’ if it comes down to it. He wants to take what I have. On September 30, it’s my job to stop this young boy’s dreams. He bit off more than he can chew too early. This is an important fight for me. I’m going to show the world that I’m not a gatekeeper in this division. I’m one of the top dogs in this division. Being a gatekeeper doesn’t sit well with me. So I’m motivated. I’ve got a chip on my shoulder and it will show on September 30.”
On training camp in South Florida with head trainer Kevin Cunningham:
“We haven’t done too much differently this training camp. The one thing we have done differently is the game plan. Every training camp we give it our all. We train really hard and that’s just the program and system that we live by. I’ve had over 200 rounds of great sparring with young guys and veterans, so I’m sharp.”
On when he first targeted Ramos as a potential opponent:
“I asked for this fight before Ramos fought Joey Spencer. They told me no. I guess he was still growing, but now is the time for him. I’m excited for it. He’s a young lion and I’m going to show him that I’m a young lion with more experience. I’m hungrier than he is. I just want it more.”
On what taking on this challenge says about him as a fighter:
“Look at my resume. It’s been like this from the beginning. They know what type of fighter I am. I feel I’m one of the best in the world and I want to leave my mark on the sport as one of the greatest to ever do it. I could have been fighting a YouTuber and I still would have trained just as hard. I look at every fight as my most important one, especially while I’m right here, close to a title. I still want to avenge my defeats against Sebastian Fundora and Jermell Charlo, but in order to do that, in order to get another world title shot, I’ve got to go out and prove myself. I’ve got to win in a good fashion.”
On how he’s able to bounce back from his defeats:
“I’m strong mentally. I really believe in myself. I know the talent that I have. I’m very talented. My hiccups only made me better. With the Charlo fight, I was a little bit too young. Charlo was fighting in his 30th fight and it was just my 19th. The experience level was different.
“With the Fundora loss, that was a fight I was winning. My trainer had to throw in the towel because of my face. He cares for me beyond boxing. He saw my face swollen and lumped up and he did what he felt was best. We live to fight another day. I came back, went to the drawing board and got better and smarter. Right now, I’m just entering my prime. I’m 27 years old and the best of me will show on September 30. I’m excited, I’m stoked, and I definitely want to show that I’m the best fighter in the division.”
On how important a statement victory is to him:
“I don’t feel that I have to make a statement, but I will make a statement. I’m always motivated to just win. That’s the only objective. But I feel I will make a statement. With the hard training camp that we had with Kevin Cunningham, who is a zero-tolerance type of trainer, he’s drawn up a great game plan and it always works. So I’m definitely going in there, listening to him, and it’s going to be a great night on September 30.”
On what fighting in the co-main event of a pay-per-view mega fight means to him:
“I’ve been waiting for moments like this. I feel like this is going to bring the best out of me. We put in a hard 10 weeks of camp. I just got back from fighting in June. Activity brings the best out of me. This is what I asked for. It’s the big stage and I’m going to show that I’m a very elite fighter. They know I’m elite, but I’m going to show that I’m one of the best in the world and I’m here to stay. I’ve got this young kid in front of me and he wants to take my spot.”