The cruiserweight unification bout between Chris Billam-Smith and Gilberto Ramirez will take place on November 16.
CHRIS BILLAM-SMITH will have the chance to unify the cruiserweight division on November 16 in Riyadh.
The WBO champion will face WBA champion Gilberto Ramirez in a fight dubbed ‘Latino Night’ promoted by Golden Boy Promotions, Boxxer in partnership with Riyadh Season.
Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of General Entertainment Authority and Golden Boy Promotions both posted the news from their social media accounts on X (formerly Twitter) this evening.
5 Special Collaborations at “Latino Night” in Riyadh 🇸🇦🏆
featuring a main event between Cruiserweight champion Ramirez (WBA) and Smith (WBO), along with bouts featuring top boxers 🥊🔥🗓️ November 16
📍 Location #BigTime#RiyadhSeason pic.twitter.com/tv78GIoYqv– TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) September 10, 2024
The Saudi boxing influencer is behind some of the biggest tickets in boxing today and has previously worked with Matchroom and Queensberry, and is now in business with Golden Boy and Top Rank.
Billam-Smith is now entering his second year as WBO cruiserweight champion after winning the title from Lawrence Okolie in May 2023. Two successful defences against Mateusz Masternak and Richard Riakporhe have yet to put him in a position to take the next step of becoming a unified and undisputed champion.
Ramirez, a former super middleweight world champion, won the WBA 200lbs belt against Arsen Goulamirian in March. The 33-year-old Mexican will be looking to go one better in the Middle East following a one-sided defeat to WBA Light Heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol in Abu Dhabi almost two years ago.
One man who will be watching the events of November 16 closely will be IBF champion Jai Opetaia. The Australian publicly called out Billam-Smith last month but must now focus on his own day in the desert when he defends his world title against Jack Massey next month.
Business is picking up in the cruiserweight division, with Noel Mikaelian taking on Ryan Rozicki for the WBC title on September 28. By the end of the year, the four belts will be split between three fighters, and by 2025, there’s a good chance one man will hold all four.
