By: Hans Themistode
Jose Ramirez hung his head despondently following his close unanimous decision defeat at the hands of Josh Taylor at the midway point of 2021.
Despite his determination, Ramirez was unable to withstand his slick counterpart on the night and ultimately went on to hit the deck on two separate occasions. As a result, a stunned Ramirez stood back in disbelief as Taylor stripped him of his WBC and WBO 140 pound world titles to reign supreme as the division’s undisputed champion.
For the duration of the year, Ramirez sulked in misery. Nonetheless, with the help of head trainer Robert Garcia, Ramirez pulled himself up by the bootstraps. To kick off his 2022 campaign, Ramirez re-entered the winners circle following a win over former multiple division titlist, Jose Pedraza.
With Ramirez regaining that winning feeling, Garcia reflects succinctly on Ramirez’s loss to Taylor while simultaneously praising his fighter’s ability to bounce back.
“Jose is very prideful. He felt embarrassed,” said Garcia during an interview with ESNEWS. “But he came back good.”
The next step for Ramirez on his climb back up the 140-pound ladder could be a world title opportunity. Although all roads to championship gold lead to Taylor, the current undisputed titlist recently revealed that he will abandon his super lightweight throne and make the trek seven pounds north where he’ll compete as a full-fledged welterweight.
Outside of a world title opportunity, Garcia is intrigued by a possible clash with former unified 135-pound champion, Teofimo Lopez. The bombastic Lopez officially ended his time at 135 pounds following his surprising split decision defeat at the hands of George Kambosos Jr. at the tail end of 2021.
In an effort to optimize his results, both Lopez and his father, Teofimo Lopez Sr., have turned their attention toward the super lightweight division. With team Lopez hoping to aggregate world titles in their new home, a showdown against Ramirez could be forthcoming.
If at any point, Ramirez is given the opportunity to face Lopez, Garcia admits that he would welcome that challenge with open arms.
“I like that fight.”