INGLEWOOD, Calif. – John Ramirez has always had a flair for the dramatic. 

That was the case for Ramirez as he used his power to score a sudden knockout in the co-featured bout to the Alexis Rocha-Giovani Santillan welterweight showdown on Saturday.

Ramirez dropped Ronal Bautista twice en route to a fourth-round knockout victory before a partisan crowd at The Forum.

The 27-year-old Ramirez, who resides in Los Angeles, improved to 13-0, 9 knockouts and won the WBA 115-pound title elimination bout. 

After a dull first two rounds, Ramirez was the aggressor during the third round. Ramirez would vary his offense, mixing left hooks and crosses to the head and body as Bautista attempted to counter with his own hooks and crosses.

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About midway through the fourth round, a well-placed left hook to the body dropped Bautista to the canvas. Bautista barely beat the count, and attempted to fight back, standing in the pocket at times with Ramirez.

Later in the round, Ramirez backed Bautista against the ropes, unleashing a barrage of punches. A right cross got through Bautista’s guard, dropping him to the canvas. Referee Jack Reiss immediately stopped the fight at 2:33. 

“I’m coming for you,” said Ramirez in the post-fight interview, referencing WBA junior bantamweight titleholder Kazuto Ioka, The Ring’s No. 1-rated junior bantamweight. “I’m your mandatory. You have to fight me.”

Ramirez last fought on May 27, winning by split decision over Fernando Diaz in a fight that was close to score. In his previous fight on February 23, Ramirez defeated Luis Villa Padilla by decision. 

Both fights took place in Indio, California. 

Bautista, who resides in Panama City, Panama, falls to 15-4, 9 KOs. Bautista previously fought on May 6, losing to WBC world flyweight titleholder Julio Cesar Martinez in Zapopan, Mexico. 

The 26-year-old Bautista had won his previous three fights prior to the loss to Martinez. 

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]

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