Robeisy Ramirez is set for the first career fight in the state from which he sought freedom.
The 29-year-old southpaw was a rock solid 125.6 pounds for WBO featherweight title defense versus Guadalajara’s Rafael Espinoza in their ESPN-televised main event. Espinoza effortlessly packed 125.3 pounds across his 6’1” frame for his first career title fight, which takes place this Saturday from Charles F. Dodge City Center in Pembroke Pines, Florida.
Ramirez (13-1, 8KOs) will attempt the second defense of the title he claimed just eight months ago. The double Olympic Gold medalist from Cienfuegos, Cuba outpointed former WBO 122-pound titleholder Isaac Dogboe over twelve rounds on April 1 to win his first major title in just his 13th pro bout.
He has since added a fifth-round knockout of Japan’s Satoshi Shimizu on July 25 in Tokyo. Saturday marks his first career fight in Florida, to where he relocated after fleeing from Cuba in 2018, two years after his second Gold medal haul during the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Ramirez now lives and trains in Las Vegas, but still considers the greater Miami area as his second home.
Espinoza (21-0, 18KOs) fights on U.S. soil for just the third time in his ten-year pro career. The 29-year-old from Guadalajara has not appeared on this side of the border since 2015, as he’s slowly developed at home. He enters the bout having stopped his last five opponents, including a pair of quick hits in March and July.
Rising junior middleweight Xander Zayas (17-0, 11KOs) gets a rare home game in a ten-round, junior middleweight contest versus Spain’s Jorge Fortea. Zayas was153.6 pounds for the evening’s co-feature, which takes place less than 30 minutes from his adopted hometown of Sunrise, Florida. Fortea was 153.7 pounds for his third career road trip.
ESPN+ Preliminaries, 5:30 p.m. ET
Bruce Carrington (9-0, 5KOs), Brooklyn, New York, pounds 125.8 pounds vs. Jason Sanchez (16-4, 9KOs), Albuquerque, New Mexico, 125.7 pounds—10 rounds, featherweight
Richard Torrez Jr. (7-0, 7KOs), Tulare, California, 230.8 pounds vs. Curtis Harper (14-10, 9KOs), Jacksonville, Florida, 273.9 pounds_6 rounds, heavyweight
Jahi Tucker (10-1, 5KOs), Deer Park, New York, 155.2 pounds vs. Francisco Daniel Veron (13-0, 10KOs), Fort Lauderdale via Buenos Aires, Argentina, 155.1 pounds—8 rounds, junior middleweight
Rohan Polanco (10-0, 6KOs), Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, 142.9 pounds vs. Keith Hunter (15-1, 9KOs), Las Vegas, 139.3 pounds—8 rounds junior welterweight
Delante Johnson (10-0, 5KOs), Cleveland, Ohio, 141.6 pounds vs. Jimerr Espinosa (15-1, 14KOs), Mexico City, 141.2 pounds—8 rounds, junior welterweight
Damian Knyba (12-0, 7KOs), Wudzyn, Poland, 264.1 pounds vs. Michael Polite Coffie (13-4, 10KOs), Kissimmee, Florida, 290.9 pounds—8 rounds, heavyweight
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. X (formerly Twitter): @JakeNDaBox