Dirty boxing? What Jose Ramirez’s next opponent said about his manager that drew reaction
Boxer Jose Ramirez’s next fight will take place in Saudi Arabia on Nov. 16.
It will be the second pro fight overseas for the Fresno County native, and he’ll be facing Arnold Barboza Jr. in a 12-round super lightweight bout in the nation’s capital, Riyadh.
But the biggest moment during the fight announcement Wednesday in Los Angeles came when Barboza called Ramirez’s longtime promoter, Rick Mirigian, a “thieving manager.”
A dispute between the two stems from when Mirigian managed Barboza. The relationship lasted from last November until earlier this year. Since then, Barboza has said Mirigian owes him money.
Mirigian after the news conference told The Bee that he had his attorney send Barboza a letter calling for the boxer to “immediately retract the defamatory statements he made about Mirigian this afternoon and cease and desist from any further defamation.”
On July 26, 2024, an arbitrator ruled on the dispute and said Barboza owes Mirigian monetary damages due to a breach of “good faith and fair dealing arising from their boxer-manager contract,” according to Mirigian’s letter.
The letter claims that during the arbitration, Barboza did not “present any evidence or even allege that Mirigian was ‘thieving’ or stole anything from him.”
Ramirez, 32, has been with Mirigian since the fighter was 8 years old growing up in Avenal.
Seating across the stage from his opponent Thursday, he did not directly address Barboza’s claim.
“It’s time for me to make a statement,” Ramirez said. “I’m ready for this mentally. I’ve been under the big lights and I have the experience and strength.”
Barboza said he respected Jose Ramirez and the upcoming bout in “personal.”
“I’ve been wanting this fight since 2019 and for whatever reason it never happened,” he said. “I tried every form. I called him out so many times. I even went as far as to sign with his same thieving manager. That didn’t work out.
“It’s crazy. I’m no longer with him (Mirigian), and the fight happens.”
Ramirez last fought in February when he faced Rances Barthelemy at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, winning by unanimous decision in his first bout with Golden Boy Promotions.
Ramirez hasn’t fought twice in a calendar year since 2019 when he won the WBO title from Maurice Hooker Jr.
This story was originally published October 4, 2024 at 5:30 AM.
