Jose Ramirez to fight Sept. 26 in Lemoore

Jose Ramirez is returning to the central San Joaquin Valley for his next fight.

The Avenal native and 2012 U.S. Olympian will defend his North American Boxing Federation junior welterweight title Sept. 26 at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in Lemoore against an opponent still to be announced.

Ramirez (15-0, 12 KOs) is coming off a third-round technical knockout against Ryusei Yoshida on July 18 in Macau, China.

This will mark Ramirez’s fifth fight in the Valley and second in Lemoore. He fought at the Golden Eagle Arena on the West Hills-Lemoore campus in 2013.

“I am honored to fight at Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino, which has been a huge supporter of me since Day One,” Ramirez said.

The bouts will be shown as part of Tecate Solo Boxeo on UniMas (Comcast Channel 12).

Said Top Rank CEO Bob Arum: “Top Rank is very proud of Jose and all that he has accomplished inside and out of the ring while helping his community. He is a great person, a great fighter and a future world champion.”

Also on the card will be Daniel Valdivia (8-0, 6 KOs), of Tulare, who will fight for an NABF junior title against Jeremy Ramos (9-1, 4 KOs), of Denver.

Joe Louie Lopez, Alex Rojas, Irvin Garcia and Julian Lopez also are scheduled to be on the card.

Tickets go on sale Wednesday, Aug. 12, at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino gift shop and at www.tachipalace.com. Only 2,000 tickets will be made available. Tickets are $35 for general admission and $65 reserved. There will be a table of 10 for $1,000.

“This fight is very special to me,” said Rick Mirigian, Ramirez’s agent/promoter. “It’s been a long time coming to enter this venue and show them boxing is alive and strong, and I want to thank the Santa Rosa Rancheria and Tachi Palace for this opportunity.”

This story was originally published August 10, 2015 at 2:51 PM with the headline "Jose Ramirez to fight Sept. 26 in Lemoore."