New York: It took time for Yordenis Ugás. Sunday night he achieved the goal and won the WBA Welterweight title and goes in the record books as the first Cuban to win that title in the division.
Now, Ugás, with a split decision win, is in position to meet Errol Spence Jr., Manny Pacquiao,or Terence Crawford who hold other major titles in the division. He scored a split-decision victory over Abel Ramos in the main event of FOX PBC Fight Night and on FOX Deportes from Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.
“I set a goal when I was a child back in Cuba to become a world champion and I accomplished that goal tonight,” said Ugás. “I’m so grateful to everyone who helped me along the way. Ramos was a very tough opponent and I knew it was not going to be easy, but I wasn’t going to let this opportunity slip away.”
Ugás set the tone from the outset, peppering Ramos with his jab early and often, as he would throughout the ensuing 12 rounds. Off of his jab, Ugás was able to slowly expand his offensive arsenal and keep the typically aggressive Ramos off-balance and unable to charge forward.
Though, the win did not go without controversy. One judge at ringside gave the fight to Ramos by a wide margin and his scorecard had Ramos winning six straight rounds. In the end, that did not matter as the other two had it 115-113 for Ugás, but it leads to a lot of questions about that scorecard.
Ugás set the tone from the outset, peppering Ramos with his jab early and often, as he would throughout the ensuing 12 rounds. Off of his jab, Ugás was able to slowly expand his offensive arsenal and keep the typically aggressive Ramos off-balance and unable to charge forward.
After the feel out first round, Ugás landed 10 jabs or more in the next 11 rounds according to CompuBox. In total, Ugás threw a career-high 504 jabs, landing 160, also a career-high.
In round three, Ramos landed a left hook at the end of an exchange that appeared to buckle Ugás, but he was unable to hurt Ugás on his follow up attack. By round four, Ramos’ left eye began swelling from the onslaught of jabs and right hands.
Ugás continued to mix up his attack as the fight wore on, dragging Ramos into the center of the ring for big exchanges at the end of rounds five and six. In round nine, Ugás began to fight from a closer distance and focus even more on attacking the body, even though he took some return fire from Ramos for his troubles.
While Ramos was able to rock Ugás late in round 12, Ugás was able to make it to the final bell to claim a split decision victory, and the WBA title, with scores of 117-11 for Ramos, overruled by two cards of 115-113 for Ugás.
“I came into this fight in the best shape of my life and it showed,” said Ugás. “Now that I’m a world champion, I want all the big names in the welterweight division.”
Ugás once again wore number 54 on his boxing tights. His best friend is Aroldis Chapman, the Yankees closer and fellow Cuban who also wears number 54.
In the co-main event, sensational prospect Jesus Ramos (13-0, 12 KOs) delivered an impressive second-round knockout of previously unbeaten Esteban Garcia (14-1, 6 KOs) in their super lightweight showdown.
The 19-year-old nephew of Abel Ramos, Jesus Ramos continued to flash the considerable power that has helped him earn a 92% knockout rate in his early pro career. Ramos used his jab early to try to find the distance for his offense, while Garcia had some success countering his aggressive opponent in the first round.
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