Zurdo Ramirez: No one can help Dmitry Bivol in the ring against me

Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez’s 45th fight will be the biggest of his pro career, as he’s set to face WBA light heavyweight titleholder Dmitry Bivol on Nov. 5 in Abu Dhabi, live on DAZN.

Ramirez (44-0, 30 KO) is a former titleholder at 168, but his run at 175 lbs hasn’t been the most inspiring. To be fair to him, he’s said repeatedly — dating back to before Bivol beat Canelo Alvarez earlier this year — that Bivol was his main target.

He’s got the fight now, and he’s sounding very confident that he’ll get the win.

“I am very ready for this,” he said at a media day on Wednsday. “The entire world will see Zurdo Ramirez and all the potential I have.

“At the end of the day, it’s just going to be me, him, and the referee inside of the ring. No one can help him once he is in the ring with me.”

The 31-year-old Ramirez will be an underdog against Bivol (20-0, 11 KO), but there is intrigue here, too. Ramirez is the bigger man at about 6’2” with a three-inch reach advantage, and it’s not as if Bivol has never underwhelmed in a fight, albeit still in clear victory.

Some will wonder if Canelo was simply tailor-made for Bivol at 175 lbs, and Zurdo, who’s also a southpaw and sometimes rehydrates to really heavy in-ring weights, will look to put another shock into the boxing world in November.