Robeisy Ramirez appeared as if he could be efficient sufficient to maybe avenge one other loss Saturday evening.
Then he channeled his inside Roberto Duran.
After absorbing a flush proper hand to his broken proper eye, Ramirez turned his again on Rafael Espinoza, waved his glove and delivered a “no mas” second within the sixth spherical of their featherweight championship rematch. As Ramirez walked away from Espinoza (26-0, 22 KOs), referee Chris Flores had no alternative however to cease their scheduled 12-round, 126-pound title combat 12 seconds into the sixth spherical at Footprint Middle in Phoenix.
The Cuban-born Ramirez (14-3, 9 KOs) defined to ESPN’s Bernardo Osuna throughout his post-fight interview that he stopped boxing as a result of he couldn’t see out of his proper eye. Ramirez informed his head coach, Ismael Salas, that he was experiencing double imaginative and prescient earlier than he bought off his stool to begin the sixth spherical.
“Look, what ended up taking place is within the fourth spherical he hit me with a few elbows within the follow-through,” Ramirez stated to Osuna. “I complained to the referee about it. He did his job, supposedly, and this occurred.
“Look, I needed to decide for my very own well being, if I’m not being protected. Look, I had double imaginative and prescient, and I needed to be sure that I depart this ring with my well being. You see that I’m OK, happily, however I simply couldn’t see out of my proper eye.”
Ramirez was forward by 5 rounds on the playing cards of judges Tim Cheatham and Dennis O’Connell, each of whom had the two-time Olympic gold medalist up by one level, 48-47. Decide Zachary Younger had Espinoza in entrance 49-46 getting into the sixth spherical.
Espinoza expressed doubt about Ramirez’s rationale for declining to proceed in High Rank’s co-feature earlier than the WBO junior light-weight championship rematch between champion Emanuel Navarrete and former champion Oscar Valdez.
“I landed a clear shot, that proper hand, and he felt that energy,” Espinoza informed Osuna. “I believe he was feeling the facility. He was beginning to really feel my stress approaching, and I believe the combat was turning by way of the tide. [It] was coming in my favor. He was feeling my energy and I believe he knew what was coming subsequent.” Ramirez was a 16-1 favourite to beat Espinoza of their first bout, however the unheralded Espinoza upset him by majority resolution nearly a 12 months to the day earlier in Pembroke Pines, Florida. Guadalajara’s Espinoza bought off the canvas from a fifth-round knockdown in December 2023, made Espinoza take a knee late within the 12th spherical and received their “Combat of the 12 months” candidate on two scorecards (115-111, 114-112, 113-113).
