TYSON FURY and Oleksandr Usyk resume battle on Saturday night to be crowned heavyweight king – but who is the third man in the ring?
Here we get to know Roberto Ramirez Jr, who will be officiating the blockbuster rematch in Riyadh.
Roberto Ramirez Jr is a professional boxing referee from Puerto Rico.
His father, Roberto Ramirez Sr, was also a respected referee who presided over title fights, including Aaron Pryor vs Gaetan Hart in November 1980 for the WBA light-welterweight belt.
Ramirez Jr followed in his father’s footsteps, beginning his professional refereeing career in 2003.
Over the course of his career to date, he has officiated an impressive 412 bouts, including multiple world title fights.
While Tyson Fury v Oleksandr Usyk 2 will be the first heavyweight world title fight he has reffed, Ramirez Jr has overseen some big clashes in the top division.
His most significant heavyweight fight so far was the 2014 demolition of Malik Scott by Deontay Wilder.
He has also looked after influencer boxing fights, including the October 2023 dust-up between Logan Paul and Dillon Danis.
READ MORE on all the build-up to the blockbuster fight in Riyadh..
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The pinnacle of Ramirez Jr’s career so far is his selection to ref the highly-anticipated heavyweight rematch between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.
The biggest fight of the year is scheduled for around 10pm on December 21, 2024, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Beyond his in-ring duties, Ramirez Jr has actively contributed to the development of boxing officiating.
In October 2023, he participated in a WBO Referee and Judges Seminar in Nicaragua, sharing his expertise with aspiring officials.
He is committed to improving the standard of officiating in boxing and passing on his knowledge to the next generation of referees.
Furthermore, Ramirez Jr has been involved in WBO conventions, further cementing his standing in the international boxing community.
While Ramirez Jr has generally enjoyed a controversy-free career, he has not been immune to criticism.
It was such a high-status fight, why would you put in a referee no one had heard of?
Chantelle Cameron
Following Chantelle Cameron’s defeat by Katie Taylor in their November 2023 rematch, both Cameron and her former trainer Jamie Moore expressed dissatisfaction with Ramirez Jr’s officiating.
Cameron told BBC Radio Northampton: “It wasn’t just me and Katie in that ring. If it was, I’d take the loss and say the better woman won on the night.
“I had everything against me. The ref on the night… It was such a high-status fight, why would you put in a referee no one had heard of?
“That’s not my job, it’s my job to fight. I don’t look into who’s reffing, who’s judging.
“I’m just frustrated — if I could turn back the hands of time, I would make sure that was all looked into. I’ve learnt my lesson.”
In a post-fight interview, Moore said: “We were denied a knockdown in the first round, which should have been a 100% legitimate knockdown.
“I begged the referee in the changing room before the fight, please, last time, she got away with holding a lot.
“My fighter’s best work is up close. Please don’t let her hold the way she did last time this time. And he allowed her to go on worse this time than it was last time.”
“So I’m gutted for her because she was so frustrated by the fourth and fifth rounds because she was holding that much.
“From watching what I watched, if Chantelle was allowed to do the work that she can do on the inside, it would have been a different result.”
Fury vs Usyk 2: Ring walk time, TV channels and undercard – all you need to know for big rematch
