Dan Rafael has reported via sources on his
Fight Freaks Unite substack
that an intriguing cruiserweight unification fight between WBA titlist Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez and WBO counterpart Chris Billam-Smith is being finalised to headline a November 16 Riyadh season card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Zurdo Ramirez vs. Chris Billam-Smith Unification Being Finalised
November 16 Card Set to Be First Riyadh Season Non-Pay-Per-View Card
According to the report, the card on November 16 will be a Golden Boy Promotions card on DAZN which will be the first Riyadh Season non-pay-per-view card. Jose Ramirez and Arnold Barboza are set to clash on the same card in a junior welterweight fight, that has been in the works for some time.
Read More: ‘Zurdo’ Makes History: Gilberto Ramirez Triumphs Over Arsen Goulamirian to Claim Cruiserweight Crown
This non-pay-per-view card is part of the new philosophy of His Excellency to make boxing more affordable for the wider public. It was recently announced that the Anthony Joshua-Daniel Dubois card on Sept. 21, will be
$19.99
in the United States and a similar price bracket in the United Kingdom.
The investment from Turki Alalshikh into boxing has seen some brilliant cards made, such as “
Ring of Fire
,” “
Day of Reckoning
” and the Matchroom vs. Queensberry
5v5 event
. His Excellency has revealed recently that he spoke to Golden Boy CEO
Oscar De La Hoya
and they decided on a top-level card without the usual pay-per-view element.
Billam Smith Confirms Ramirez Talks
The Bournemouth FC fan has confirmed in a recent interview with Sky Sports that negotiations for the Ramirez fight are ongoing:
“We are in talks for that fight. At the moment it’s the only fight we’re talking about.”
Read More: Chris Billam-Smith Shines at Selhurst Park With Dominant Display
He continued:
“I always said I’d be ready in November or December. At the moment we’re looking at November. We’re working on it. It’s exciting, a unification fight against someone who’s only ever been beaten (by decision in a light heavyweight title fight) by (Dmitry) Bivol. So, it’s
a very hard
test. It would be an honor for me to fight and become
unified
champion.”
