By: Hans Themistode
Both Jose Ramirez and Viktor Postol waited, waited, waited and waited some more.
But with various delays due to the world pandemic, a contest between the two felt improbable. Despite that, they’ll finally have their long awaited matchup go down later tonight at the MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
For Ramirez, a bout with Postol follows the perpetual list of top fighters he has faced over the years. The momentum that he built from wins over the likes of Amir Imam, Jose Zepeda and most recently, Maurice Hooker, has him knocking on the door of most pound for pound lists.
Unlike most fighters who took the COVID-19 induced hiatus to gain a few pounds, Ramirez was hard at work sharpening his tools.
“I stayed at the gym,” said Ramirez on a recent Top Rank press release. “I remained composed and patient. I’m a man of faith. I believe everything happens for a reason, and now that I’m here, I can’t wait to showcase my talent. I’m ready to go and continue my journey to become undisputed champion. I know Viktor Postol stands in the way of that, and he is a very experienced fighter. I have been training very, very hard for this fight.”
Ramirez, 28 and Postol, 36, appear to be on the opposite end of the career rollercoaster at the moment. The current unified champion is steadily building his name in boxing circles as he prepares for big time clashes against fellow champions in Josh Taylor and Terence Crawford.
Postol on the other hand, appears to be on a fast track to nowhere. Since his title win against Lucas Matthysse in 2015, Postol has come up woefully short in the two biggest matchups of his career against Crawford and Taylor.
But with his name possibly unassociated with the top of the division following a loss later tonight, Postol has pushed his 36 year old legs to the limit during his training camp.
“Jose is a good fighter,” said Postol. “He is a good champion, but I know I have a good chance to win this fight. I have the motivation because this fight is for two belts. I’ll be ready.”
The action kicks off at 9 PM eastern time on ESPN.