The last time British light heavyweight Lerrone Richards prepared to challenge WBA interim champion Albert Ramirez in Montreal, his preparation was all in vain. The bout, set for February 5, ultimately fell apart when Ramirez, the Venezuelan, was hospitalised with suspected appendicitis during fight week.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Richards, just an hour from weighing in, couldn\u2019t quite believe it. Suddenly his big opportunity \u2013 the fight of his life \u2013 had become something he would remember for all the wrong reasons. He only hoped that he would soon get another chance and be able to go through the process again \u2013 the preparation, the training, the travelling.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Believing he would, Richards opted to stick around in Montreal, despite having no fight. He soaked up the atmosphere of the event he was meant to headline and he acclimatised to his surroundings. He said to those who asked him how he was feeling, \u201cDon\u2019t worry, I\u2019ll be back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Next week, on June 4, he will be proved correct. Next week Richards and Ramirez will attempt to do what they failed to do last time, and at the same venue: Montreal Casino.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Though it has only been a few months since their first attempt, Richards claims he is today a better fighter than he was back in February. He also knows a great deal more about the champion he aims to dethrone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m a boxing purist and a boxing fan and watch a lot of boxing across all weight classes,\u201d said Richards. \u201cDid I know about Ramirez? Well, kind of. But he\u2019s not really the biggest name in the division, let\u2019s be honest. I was aware of him because he is in my weight class and that\u2019s it. But once I found out I was fighting him, I had a look at him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s an all-round type of fighter. Obviously, you can see by his knockout ratio that he carries a lot of power. He has a good amateur pedigree as well, like myself. He\u2019s a good thinking fighter and I rate him. You can see why he has the belt and the rankings he has. I can\u2019t wait to take it from him. As good as he is, Ramirez has not boxed anyone at my level.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although Ramirez is unbeaten in 22 fights, with 19 wins inside the distance, Richards is not wrong to say he is untested. He has fought in Mexico, Russia, Argentina, France, Canada, Venezuela, and even Libya, but not once has Ramirez faced a familiar name or someone favoured to beat him. That doesn\u2019t mean his reputation is unwarranted, only that his record, as impressive as it is, might not tell the whole story.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Richards, meanwhile, has a professional record of 19-1 (4 KOs) and has, as a super middleweight, held British, Commonwealth and European titles, as well as an IBO belt. Now at light heavyweight, the Londoner is eager to break new ground and go one better than domestic, European and fringe world titles. Not only that, he is eager to show that the only thing stopping him ruling the world as a super middleweight was the difficulty he had making the 168lb weight limit.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI was staying at super middleweight for way too long, and I paid the price unfortunately,\u201d Richards said, referring to his one pro loss: a sixth-round stoppage defeat to Steed Woodall in 2024. \u201cBut sometimes that\u2019s what happens. It\u2019s a lesson learnt. I\u2019ve gone up now and I feel stronger than ever. I\u2019m really happy about the weight and the decision to move up.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIn that situation I was very stubborn. But I\u2019m one of the most avoided fighters in the country. It\u2019s hard because nobody really wants to fight me. It\u2019s surprising that even after my loss nobody wants to fight me. When they talk about light heavyweights, they never mention me. But you would think that given what I did at super middleweight, they would at least bring up my name now and again. Nobody does, though. They keep my name out of their mouth. Once I win this fight they will have to talk about me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Like many a low-key technician, Richards is a boxer trying to make himself heard in a sport that frowns upon nuance and rewards those who make loud noises. Even if a boxer today has the skills to achieve success, there is a growing fear that they need more than just skill to get opportunities and stand out from the crowd.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Richards, now 33, has certainly confronted that fear in recent times, though believes that eventually he will win over both those who doubt him and those who refuse to even acknowledge his existence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou would think a British fighter like me \u2013 a top amateur who has won major professional titles \u2013 would be backed a bit more,\u201d he said. \u201cThey would think, You know what, he\u2019s a horrible guy to fight, he\u2019s very good, let\u2019s promote him and push him. But nobody has decided to do that. That\u2019s why I\u2019ve just got to go out there, do my thing, win my belt, and come back and say, \u2018Hi, guys. Remember me?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
In order for Richards to receive some attention back at home, he must first go away. Should he then return home with a belt, there is a chance people \u2013 opponents, promoters, TV bosses \u2013 might look at him differently when he passes them on the street. Either way, it will be a lot harder to ignore him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt might sound weird and unexpected when I say this, but I prefer to do it this way,\u201d said Richards. \u201cPeople might look at me and say, \u201cYeah, but he doesn\u2019t have a choice.\u201d But we all have a choice, right? I\u2019m enjoying the choices I have made. I don\u2019t really care about boxing in someone else\u2019s backyard [Ramirez is promoted by Montreal-based promotional outfit Eye of the Tiger]. The world is my home.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cIt does look like I\u2019m going to do it the hard way and yeah I am, I guess. But I don\u2019t look at it that way. I just see this as another day at the office. That\u2019s all it is to me. It\u2019s just another opponent. A dangerous opponent, yeah, but still just another opponent. I believe I can compete at this level.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m confident. I\u2019m not na\u00efve and I\u2019m not boastful, but I believe in myself. It doesn\u2019t matter what anyone says to me \u2013 I have a great team around me and they believe in my ability \u2013 it\u2019s about what\u2019s in my mind.\u201d<\/p>\n
Much of Richard\u2019s belief stems from his ability and the fact that he has been preparing for this fight with Ramirez for most of the year. Added to that is Richards\u2019 experience, as both an amateur and pro, which should stand him in good stead and give him reason to believe. After all, with experience comes knowledge; with knowledge comes confidence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been boxing since I was six years old, had over 100 amateur fights, and have been a pro now for 13 years,\u201d Richards said. \u201cI have done something at each level \u2013 British, Commonwealth, European, international, IBO \u2013 and been top 10 in The Ring magazine rankings at super middleweight. Everything about me is real. I\u2019m not at this level due to luck. I\u2019ve achieved. When you skip levels, you might question yourself. Am I meant to be at this level? Can I do this? But I don\u2019t have that doubt because I\u2019ve proved myself at each step. I\u2019m mature, I\u2019m experienced, and I\u2019m older now, so I can break things down a lot more efficiently.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI know I\u2019m going to be happy on June 4th. That feeling I can\u2019t wait to feel. It will be a different trip home this time. I\u2019ll have a nice shiny belt with me.\u201d<\/p>\n
In that nice shiny belt Richards will at some point see his reflection: the big smile, the tears in his eyes. He will also be seen by others holding it, wearing it, owning it. They might not call him a \u201cworld champion\u201d, but at least now they might have a reason to fight him. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The last time British light heavyweight Lerrone Richards prepared to challenge WBA interim champion Albert Ramirez in Montreal,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":606465,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[2560,6102,10078,178370,8628,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-606464","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-boxing","tag-boxing-news","tag-boxingscene","tag-lerrone-richards","tag-montreal","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/606464","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=606464"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/606464\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/606465"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=606464"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=606464"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=606464"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}