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Robeisy Ramirez To Defend WBO Featherweight Crown Against
Satoshi Shimizu In Co-Feature To Stephen Fulton vs. Naoya
Inoue On July 25
Robeisy "El Tren" Ramirez is ready to make the inaugural
defense of his WBO featherweight world title against a
fellow two-time Olympian.
Ramirez will take on Japanese contender Satoshi “Diamond
Left” Shimizu Tuesday, July 25, at Ariake Arena in Tokyo.
Ramirez-Shimizu will serve as the co-feature to the world
title showdown between Philadelphia’s WBC/WBO junior
featherweight champion Stephen Fulton and Japan’s
pound-for-pound king Naoya “Monster” Inoue.
Fulton-Inoue, Ramirez-Shimizu and additional undercard bouts
will stream live and exclusively in the U.S. on ESPN+.
Ramirez said, "Next stop, Japan! I am happy to announce my
quick return to the ring in what will be the first defense
of my WBO world championship. Fighting is what I do best,
titles are meant to be defended, and there’s no stopping 'El
Tren!'"
Ramirez (12-1, 7 KOs), a two-time Olympic gold medalist,
experienced a rocky start to his pro career following a
split decision loss to Adan Gonzales in August 2019.
However, after joining forces with Cuban trainer Ismael
Salas, the 29-year-old has developed a more pro-friendly
stye. He has remained undefeated since and avenged his loss
to Gonzales in a 2020 rematch inside the MGM Grand Las Vegas
Bubble. In 2022, Ramirez stopped Irish veteran Eric Donovan
in February, starched then-unbeaten contender Abraham Nova
in June, and defeated Jose Matias Romero via ninth-round TKO
in October. In his last fight, the fighting pride of
Cienfuegos, Cuba, soundly defeated former junior
featherweight world champion Isaac Dogboe by unanimous
decision to capture the WBO featherweight crown.
Shimizu (11-1, 10 KOs) is a 37-year-old southpaw making his
first attempt at a world title. Before turning pro, he
represented Japan at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. In his
first Olympiad, Shizmu was eliminated in his opening bout.
Four years later, he moved down to bantamweight and earned a
bronze medal, defeating Dogboe but losing to eventual gold
medalist Luke Campbell. Shimizu has only tasted defeat once
as a pro, a sixth-round TKO loss to Joe Noynay in 2019. His
pro career is otherwise unblemished, having knocked out 10
of 11 opponents across an almost seven-year span.
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