Jose Ramirez had another lackluster performance under the Golden Boy Promotions banner Friday evening. The former unified champion at light welterweight faced Devin Haney at Times Square in New York City, and it was anything but a highly-contested fight.
Instead, Dan Rafael, a long time boxing writer, described the scheduled 12-round junior lightweight as a “terrible fight” and “one of the worst fights I have seen in a long time.”
For the second straight time, Ramirez (29-3) falls by unanimous decision. The referees favored Haney (32-0) 119-109 x2 and 118-110. With Oscar De La Hoya, the Avenal native is 1-2. His only win under Golden Boy came in his debut with the promotion in April 2024 at the Save Mart Center, winning by unanimous decision.
“If ever a fight was capable of inducing a snooze or nap in Times Square, this might be it,” Rafael quoted Jim Lampley, who called the fight. That is a bad look for Ramirez and Haney. More so for Ramirez, who had plenty of chances to capitalize on a confused Haney, who might’ve been still reeling from the fight against Ryan Garcia in 2024.
Ramirez and Haney held their gloves up during most of the fight and the crowd just sat and didn’t react to anything.
Per CompuBox, Rafael shared that Haney (229) and Ramiez (274) combined to throw 503 punches – fourth fewest in a 12-round fight in CompuBox’s 40-year history. That is embarrassing. Many said Ramirez looks “shot” during the fight.
It is unknown what is next for Ramirez, but it will take a long road for him to get back in serious contention for world titles, assuming he wants to keep fighting past 32-years-old and pick up wins. Ramirez had previously lost to Arnold Barboza Jr. by unanimous decision in Nov. 2024.
Could retirement be looming for Ramirez after turning pro in 2012, where he energized fans in the central San Joaquin Valley for many years and sold out Selland Arena and the Save Mart Center? It is doubtful since Ramirez moved to 147 pounds and probably wants to get some fights in to see where he stands.