The latest big Riyadh Season boxing show will take place this Saturday and, in featuring some of the world's top Latino fighters, represents a new concept for the Saudi boxing boom.
The team behind Riyadh Season have already shown a willingness to innovate, including June's Queensbury versus Matchroom team event, and now they are hosting a show with a specific focus on fighters from Latin America. Here's everything you need to know.
What is Riyadh Season Latino Night?
So far the big shows in Saudi Arabia have been dominated by fighters signed with the two major UK promotional outfits: Queensbury and Matchroom. More recently, Boxxer, the third and smaller UK entity – and promoters of Chris Billam-Smith – have also come on board.
However, earlier this year, Riaydh Season signed partnerships with Top Rank and Golden Boy, two of the big players in US boxing.
Riyadh Season Latino Night is effectively a showcase for Golden Boy Promotions, the company headed up by the boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya.
What is the main event?
Top of the bill is an exciting unification bout in the cruiserweight division involving WBA champion Gilberto 'Zurdo' Ramirez, one of Golden Boy's longest serving fighters.
He will be facing WBO cruiserweight champion Chris Billam-Smith of England, who is set for the biggest fight of his career in what will be his Riyadh Season debut.
Ramirez is a former super-middleweight belt holder who has a career record of 46-1 with 30 knockouts. His sole defeat was a lopsided decision loss against Dmitry Bivol at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi in November 2022.
Ramirez told World Boxing News: “I’m really excited to be here, to be a part of the Latino night. I will become the first Mexican cruiserweight unified champion. It’s exciting because my dream will come true this November 16. I’ve been putting everything into training, a lot of work, hard work. Thank you, everyone.”
However, his opponent Billam-Smith said he was going to spoil the party. “This opportunity for me is huge," he said. "It’s a unification like [promoter] Ben [Shalom] spoke about. I’ve been written off many times before. Last time out against Richard Riakporhe. I was going into his backyard, his soccer stadium, and it was all about him, and it was his night, and I went and spoiled the party, and unfortunately for the Latinos, on November 16, I’ll be doing exactly the same again. All respect to Zurdo.”
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Dmitry Bivol throws a right at Gilberto Ramirez on his way to victory in their WBA light-heavyweight title contest at Etihad Arena on November 5, 2022 in Abu Dhabi. Getty -
Dmitry Bivol celebrates victory. Getty -
Dmitry Bivol throws a left at Gilberto Ramirez. Getty -
Dmitry Bivol throws a right at Gilberto Ramirez. Getty -
Dmitry Bivol punches Gilberto Ramirez at Etihad Arena. Getty -
Dmitry Bivol prepares for the fight. Getty -
Gilberto Ramirez prepares for the title fight. Getty -
Dmitry Bivol and Gilberto Ramirez slug it out in Abu Dhabi. Getty
Who is on the undercard?
The event features a total of six fights:
Gilberto Ramirez v Chris Billam-Smith; for the WBA and WBO cruiserweight titles
Jose Ramirez v Arnold Barbosa Jr; super lightweight
Oscar Collazo v Thammanoon Niyomtrong; for Collazo's WBO minimumweight title
William Zepeda v Tevin Farmer; lightweight
Oscar Duarte v Botirzhon Akhmedov; super lightweight
Ziyad Almaayouf v Juan Garcia; welterweight
When and where is it happening?
The card takes place on Saturday, November 16, at the newly opened The Venue in Riyadh.
What time does it start?
The action starts at 8pm local time. That's 9pm in the UAE, 5pm in the UK, and 12 noon US Eastern Time.
What time are the ring walks for the main event?
The main event is likely to start at around 1am local time, that's 2am in the UAE, 10pm in the UK, and 5pm US Eastern Time. The start time could change depending on the length of the undercard bouts.
Are tickets available?
Tickets are still available and can be purchased here.
How do I watch?
The event is being broadcast worldwide by Dazn.
