Someone will make history on Saturday night when Ring Magazine junior welterweight champion and IBF/WBA beltholder Josh Taylor meets WBC/WBO junior welterweight titlist Jose Ramirez at the Virgin Hotels Las Vegas.

This megafight will be broadcast on ESPN (8:30 p.m. ET/ 5:30 p.m. PT) and will stream live in the U.K. on FITE for £9.99 (coverage begins at 1:30 a.m. U.K. time).

If Ramirez (26-0, 17 knockouts) wins, he will be the first Mexican-American to be an undisputed junior welterweight champion.

“It’s an honor for me to face a great fighter like Taylor,” Ramirez said. “This will be the best fight of the year. He is very prideful of his country and I respect that. That’s the way a champion should be.

“This has been a great training camp. I’m very motivated. It will be an honor and a blessing to make history as the first Mexican undisputed champion. I believe a fighter like Taylor will bring out the best in me. He is a technical fighter, and when you face a fighter like that, you see everything clearly. You will see all the small things that I have worked on and that will show the experience I have as a fighter. You will see all my skills, and I will put on a show against a great fighter.

“I’ve never been a fan of opinions of who is the best fighter out there. Sometimes people don’t understand that especially at this level, each fight is going to be tough. I always train like I’m the underdog. I always train like each fight is the biggest fight of my career. I can’t afford to lose. That’s always been my mentality. I always find a way to win.”

If southpaw Taylor (17-0, 13 KOs) wins, he will be the first Scot to be an undisputed junior welterweight champion–and first Scot to be an undisputed world champion in any weight class since the great Hall of Famer Ken Buchanan became world lightweight champion in 1971.

Saturday night will mark Taylor’s second fight with trainer Ben Davison, the former trainer of Tyson Fury, after “The Tartan Tornado” left Shane McGuigan. It was Davison who trained Fury for his first fight with Deontay Wilder, which resulted in a disputed draw. When Fury wanted Davison to split time training him for the Wilder rematch with American trainer SugarHill Steward, because Fury wanted a more offensive approach, Davison walked away.

Under Davison, Taylor said that they devised a great game plan in his quest to make history.

“This fight means the world to me,” Taylor said. “It puts my name in the history books as one of the [best] Scottish fighters in history. That’s why I have trained so hard for this fight. I dedicated my whole life to the sport. I’m so confident. This is a pure boxing fight.

“I loved every single minute of camp in Las Vegas. Felt great to be back to normal.

“I respect every fighter that jumps in the ring. You don’t become a unified champion out of anywhere. You have to be a great fighter. I highly respect (Ramirez). He is a great fighter and a great person, but on Saturday night, as soon as that bell rings, all that goes out the window.

“I’m confident I’m getting the KO on Saturday.”

Weights for the Ramirez-Taylor card on Saturday:

ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT

Undisputed Junior Welterweight World Title 12 Rounds

Jose Ramirez (26-0, 17 KOs) 139.6 lbs, 28, 5-10, 72” vs. Josh Taylor (17-0, 13 KOs) 139.6 lbs, 30, 5-10, 69.5”

Judges: Tim Cheatham, Dave Moretti and Steve Weisfeld
Referee: Kenny Bayless

Junior Welterweight 10 Rounds

Jose Zepeda (33-2, 26 KOs) 140.2 lbs, 31, 5-8, 70.5” vs. Hank Lundy (31-8-1, 14 KOs) 139 lbs, 37, 5-7, 68”

Junior Welterweight 8 Rounds

Elvis Rodriguez (11-0-1, 10 KOs) 139.8 lbs, 25, 5-10½, 71” vs. Kenneth Sims Jr. (15-2-1, 5 KOs) 139.8 lbs, 27, 5-10, 69”

ESPN+, 4:45 p.m. ET/1:45 p.m. PT

Featherweight 8 Rounds

Jose Enrique Vivas (20-1, 11 KOs) 127.4 lbs vs. Louie Coria (12-4, 7 KOs) 127.5 lbs

Junior Lightweight 8 Rounds

Andres Cortes (13-0, 7 KOs) 132.2 lbs vs. Eduardo Garza (15-3-1, 8 KOs) 132.5 lbs

Featherweight 6 Rounds

Robeisy Ramirez (6-1, 4 KOs) 126.6 lbs vs. Ryan Lee Allen (10-4-1, 5 KOs) 125.4 lbs

Junior Welterweight 8 Rounds

Raymond Muratalla (11-0, 9 KOs) 137 lbs vs. Jose Gallegos (20-10, 15 KOs) 139.6 lbs

Middleweight 6 Rounds

Javier Martinez (3-0, 1 KO) 162.5 lbs vs. Calvin Metcalf (10-5-1, 3 KOs) 160,4 lbs

Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter who has been working for Ring Magazine/RingTV.com since October 1997 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on twitter @JSantoliquito.

Ramirez vs. Taylor will be broadcast live on ESPN + in the U.S. and will stream live in the UK on FITE for £9.99 (live coverage begins at 1:30 a.m. U.K. time). 

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