Undefeated Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez (28-0, 22 KOs), of Mazatlan, Mexico, is ready for his debut on the international stage. The southpaw Ramirez, 23, with the mega-watt smile and matinee idol looks, has graduated from prospect to bona fide world title contender. He will be defending his perfect record against “The One” Junior Talipeau (20-2-1, 7 KOs), a New Zealand native who fights out of Kogarah, New South Wales, Australia.
GILBERTO RAMIREZ
“I am very excited to be making my HBO debut on this card and I want to make a good impression so I can continue fighting on HBO. This is the Zurdo Ramirez Era and I want to shine. I am prepared for Junior Talipeau and I am prepared to give a good show on Saturday. I want to prove — in the most emphatic terms — that I am ready to challenge for a world title.
“This is my first time in Macau and I love it. The Venetian Macao is fabulous and the fans here are great. The climate in Macau is similar to Mazatlan and I had no problem adjusting to the time zone change. My punches land just as hard here as they do in the Western Hemisphere.”
JUNIOR TALIPEAU
“I am excited for this fight and have trained very hard. I am impressed with Ramirez’s accomplishments but I am no intimidated by them. I intend to attack him early and bang his body and head and stop him late in the fight.
“It’s a great incentive to be the first one to blemish his perfect record and derail his world title shot plans. I did not travel to Macau to be another number in Ramirez’s victory column. I came here to win. I came here to hurt.”
The Ramirez-Talipeau super middleweight title fight will take place this Saturday, July 19, at The Venetian® Macao’s Cotai Arena and will be televised via same-day delay on HBO2, beginning at 5:00 p.m. ET/PT. The HBO2 telecast will also feature two-time Chinese Olympic gold medalist and national icon Zou Shiming (4-0, 1 KO),of Guizhu, China, stepping up to his first 10-round bout, facing off against hard-punching veteran and three-time world title challenger Luis “Chino” De La Rosa , (23-3-1, 13 KOs), of Barranquilla, Colombia.
