Junior bantamweight prospect John Ramirez has talked the talk, thus far, as a pro. The unbeaten and outspoken Ramirez will now have the opportunity to headline the first significant fight card of his career.

Ramirez will face Luis Padilla on February 23 at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California. The 10-round bout will top a Golden Boy Fight Night card that will stream live on DAZN (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT).

In his last bout on May 14, Ramirez scored a vicious first-round knockout victory over Jan Salvatierra. The win marked Ramirez’s third fight under the Golden Boy banner.

The 26-year-old was a star athlete in high school, playing football and soccer before dedicating 100 percent of his time to boxing, where he was also an amateur standout.

Eric Gomez, president of Golden Boy Promotions, believes Ramirez is a future world titleholder with an “it” factor that could propel his success in the sport. 

“He’s a very smart fighter,” Gomez told The Ring. “He’s aggressive but smart. He’s just very talented. [Ramirez is] personable and has got charisma. The kid has superstar written all over him. Just the way he carries himself, how hard he works and trains. He’s an overall great athlete.”

Padilla (15-3-2, 2 KOs), who resides in the boxing hotbed of Guadalajara, Mexico, defeated former world title challenger Carlos Buitrago by unanimous decision in his last bout on November 18. Padilla has won his last two fights since losing by knockout to former world title challenger Samuel Cardona in December 2021. 

In the co-feature, Manuel Flores of nearby Coachella will square off against Nicaragua’s Marvin Solano (24-8, 8 KOs) in an eight-round bantamweight bout. Flores (14-0, 11 KOs) has won his last six bouts by knockout. 

The Ramirez-Padilla fight will headline the first Golden Boy Promotions card of 2023 in Indio. Golden Boy regularly promotes their Golden Boy Fight Night cards on Thursday nights. 

Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at [email protected]

Follow @FSalazarBoxing