On Saturday night, March 17, 2018, the vacant WBC Junior Welterweight belt will be on the line as Jose Ramirez (21-0, 16 KOs) will face Amir Imam (21-1, 18 KOs) at The Theater inside Madison Square Garden.
The two are scheduled to go 12 rounds, headlining a Top Rank card that will be televised live on ESPN starting at 8:00 pm, EST.
This card will also feature Irish sensation Michael Conlan, who returns to the scene of his pro boxing debut. Conlan will be the center of attention, considering the Irish following he has in New York.
They’ll be no shortage of Irish pride this St. Patrick’s Day weekend and I fully expect the Irishman to cruise past his opponent, David Berna, with a middle-round knockout.
ESPN, MSG, St. Patrick’s Day weekend; look for Conlan to put on a show and capitalize on this opportunity, taking a major step towards becoming one of boxing’s next stars.
The main event will feature not only a 140-pound title, but the first promotional battle between Bob Arum and Don King, since 2011.
“My fighter, Top Rank’s fighter, Jose Ramirez, a young kid from Fresno, against, listen to this, Don King’s fighter, Amir Imam,” said Arum (via ESPN). “So it’ll be Arum and King going at each other in the Mecca of Boxing. Don’t miss it!”
The fight itself shouldn’t be too much of a surprise. Ramirez will have a clear power advantage over Imam. If he can take a page out of Adrian Granados’ game plan from his fight with Imam in 2015, Ramirez should have his way in the fight.
Three years is a long time, but since his TKO loss to Granados, Imam has been spoon fed his last three opponents.
Ramirez is a legit threat at 140 pounds for anyone. He has proven to carry his power up through weight classes and has KO’d the last four men to try him.
Photo by Mikey Williams/Top Rank
