<\/p>\n
O’Shaquie Foster (left) and Raymond Ford (right) face off with promoter Eddie Hearn between them ahead of their fight for Foster’s junior lightweight\u00a0title Saturday, May 30\u00a0at Fertitta Center.<\/p>\n
Matchroom Boxing<\/p>\n
Raymond Ford (left) punches Abraham Nova during the Super Featherweight fight between Raymond Ford and Abraham Nova on the ESports World Cup fight night at the ANB arena on August 16, 2025 in Riyadh.<\/p>\n
Richard Pelham\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
O’Shaquie Foster celebrates after winning his fight against Stephen Fulton Jr. at Frost Bank Center on December 6, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas.<\/p>\n
Omar Vega\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
If you talk separately with the two boxers fighting for a world title Saturday night at University of Houston\u2019s Fertitta Center<\/a>, you\u2019d never know there\u2019s any animosity simmering.<\/p>\n \u201cMe and him don\u2019t know each other from a can of paint,\u201d World Boxing Council junior lightweight champion O\u2019Shaquie Foster<\/a> said from his home gym at Main Street Boxing in downtown Houston. \u201cI don\u2019t know the dude.\u201d<\/p>\n Main event: O’Shaquie Foster (24-3, 12 KOs) vs. Raymond Ford (18-1-1, 8 KOs) Five miles up the road at Prince Boxing Gym in Fifth Ward, Raymond Ford says the same.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s not really a beef, it\u2019s just competition,\u201d said the former featherweight world champion who has moved up in weight class and has his eyes on Foster\u2019s belt. \u201cHe\u2019s just got something that I want. He\u2019s a world champion. I feel like people try to make it a beef, but as somebody that\u2019s on the come up and who\u2019s a contender in the division, of course they\u2019re going to want to fight the world champion, so that\u2019s all it is with me.\u201d<\/p>\n Those platitudes sound nice, but every time Foster and Ford get near each other, the simmering quickly turns to a boil.<\/p>\n When they ran into each other sitting ringside for the Emanuel Navarrete-Eduardo N\u00fa\u00f1ez junior lightweight title fight in February, they got into a heated argument that spread across social media<\/a>. In the build-up to the fight this week, the two met at Sabine Street Bridge over Buffalo Bayou for a photo shoot when Foster didn\u2019t like Ford bumping up against him while talking trash, so Foster gave him a shove in the chest<\/a> that led to chaos between the camps. At the next day\u2019s fight week press conference, they went nose-to-nose again, and this time it was\u00a0Ford who did the shoving<\/a>.<\/p>\n That led to a war of words on social media with Ford proposing the two meet up to fight<\/a> right away instead of waiting to fight in front of the crowd on the UH campus and streaming on DAZN. Foster responded by saying<\/a> Ford was trying to mess up their big fight, telling Ford, \u201c1 more day and ima give you everything you looking for, goofy!!!\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n That\u2019s a lot of animosity for two world-class fighters who share the same city. Foster (24-3, 12 KOs), who is the slight betting favorite, grew up in Orange, but turned himself into a world champion after making the move 110 miles west to Houston. Ford (18-1-1, 8 KOs) is from Camden, N.J., but started training at Prince Boxing Gym \u2014 owned by\u00a0James Prince<\/a>, founder of Houston\u2019s legendary rap label Rap-A-Lot Records \u2014 in 2022 and made the full-time move to the city in 2024 when he won his first world title.<\/p>\n Despite their home gyms being separated merely by a 10-minute drive, the two say they never run into each other outside of boxing.\u00a0<\/p>\n The 27-year-old Ford finds himself in good company in Prince\u2019s stable of fighters that includes fellow New Jersey native\u00a0Shakur Stevenson, who is a Top 5 pound-for-pound fighter by anyone\u2019s rankings and also has moved full-time to Houston.<\/p>\n Those two also are tight with other top fighters around the same weight class, including undefeated junior welterweight (140 pounds) fighter Richardson Hitchens and former lightweight (135 pounds) champion\u00a0Keyshawn Davis.<\/p>\n And that\u2019s where the 32-year-old Foster, who has been calling for a shot at Stevenson for years, says the feud had to have originated.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cThe animosity has to come from his pops, his bestie Shakur,\u201d Foster said. \u201cI guess they got mad that I didn\u2019t want to be a part of their group of friends. They wanted to find somebody that would get in my way and I think they\u2019ve sent Ray Ford.\u201d<\/p>\n Raymond Ford (left) sits ringside with WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson (right) at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall on April 12, 2025 in Atlantic City, New Jersey.<\/p>\n Ed Mulholland\/Getty Images<\/p>\n To prepare for his first title shot at 130 pounds, Ford, who is 3-0 since moving up from 126 pounds in 2024, has been sparring with Stevenson but says the reigning 140-pound champion doesn\u2019t need to give him any tips to prepare him for Saturday night.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cHe doesn\u2019t really tell me anything, just to be myself and stay sharp,\u201d Ford said. \u201cHe\u2019s sparring me, so that\u2019s more than enough right there, just getting in there and getting that look.\u201d<\/p>\n Stevenson is expected to be ringside at Fertitta Center and Foster plans to give him a good look as well.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s what\u2019s going to make it look even better when I beat this guy, that y\u2019all had all this help, y\u2019all tried to do all these things and it just didn\u2019t work,\u201d Foster said.<\/p>\n If he wins, Ford plans to rack up all the other belts at 130 pounds. Foster also has long wanted to unify the belts in the weight class, but is ready to move up to whatever weight is necessary to get a shot at Stevenson, saying \u201cI just need to get him across the ring from me.\u201d<\/p>\n Saturday night is a battle of Houston fighters at Fertitta Center, but Foster already can imagine an even bigger local showdown later in the year.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not looking past May 30, but why not do me and Shakur at Toyota Center?\u201d he says. \u201cLet me take care of this business in front of me, and then let\u2019s do it really big right\u00a0here in the city.\u201d<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n
When: Saturday, May 30 (Prelims begin at 4:25, main card begins at 7 p.m.)
Where: Fertitta Center, University of Houston
Tickets: $50-$70, available at Fertitta Center website<\/a>
TV\/Streaming: DAZN
Also on main card: Charlie\u00a0Sheehy vs. Jaret Gonzalez Quiroz (lightweight)
Omari Jones vs. Alan Sanchez (junior middleweight)
Miguel Flores vs. Javon Woodard Jr. (featherweight)<\/p>\n<\/p>\n