Photo: Vincent Ethier – Artur Ziyatdinov may no longer box for a Montreal banner, but he still trains there, now with Jessy Ross Thompson.
I was disappointed like a child who has his gifts taken away from under the tree when I learned that Charles Foster got injured during training. The left-hander from Connecticut is #6 in the WBA and holds an impressive record of 22-1. I was already salivating at the thought of seeing him against Albert Ramirez. Short-lived disappointment, his replacement is the former EOTTM tiger, Artur Ziyatdinov (15-1, 12 KOs).
My first encounter with Ziyatdinov
We are at the Pointe-à-Callière museum where a big announcement is taking place, David Lemieux will face his arch-enemy Curtis Stevens. I am in the back observing Anna Reva, a beautiful and gifted woman when it comes to discovering talent in boxing. Her new project: Artur Ziyatdinov, 21 years old, announced as our next heavyweight, even though he is short at 6 feet 2 inches.
Anecdote
In his first fight, security misread his email to open the venue to the public, result: he knocked out Csaba Schrammel in 76 seconds in front of me and Manny Montreal, attentive to this young prodigy.
Артур Акбарович Зиятдинов (his real name) built a record as quickly as he changed trainers until he lost to a veteran who benefited from a local decision in Russia, Gasan Gasanov. Artur fell victim to COVID in the other sense of the word. He couldn’t return to Canada in time and had to box in Russia.
I took the time to sit down with Artur Ziyatdinov, here’s what he had to say.
“I was born and lived until the age of 12 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. At the age of 12, I moved to Crimea due to my ethnic background, the Crimean Tatars. My ancestors are the indigenous people of the Crimean Peninsula. In 1944, Stalin deported my people from their homeland, so, like many others, I was born in another country,” he recounted.
“I started boxing in 2010 in Crimea under the guidance of my first coach, Sergey Lapin, who also trained Oleksandr Usyk. I landed in Montreal for the first time in December 2016, at the invitation of my former manager, Anna Reva. I had my first twelve fights with EOTTM. I was trained by many renowned coaches, including Marc Ramsay, with whom I worked for a year, and Stéphan Larouche. Today, I work with a young and talented coach, Jesse Ross Thompson. I was Artur Beterbiev’s main sparring partner, and I spent his entire training camp with him, from start to finish. Then, I’ve continued preparing for Ramirez…,” the talented right-hander continued.
“Artur is a technical boxer with a respectable punching power; he is facing his biggest challenge in Albert Ramirez’s career. I expect a very technical fight; he took the fight without hesitation; it’s a sign that he will be ready,” said expert Samuel Décarie-Drolet.
And his opponent, Albert Ramirez?
“I know he’s from Venezuela and has achieved good results in amateur boxing. He has also been working with EOTTM since last year. I feel good. I believe tonight will be a significant step in my career. Everything is as it should be. I will do my job and continue to conquer the world of boxing,” said Artur.
Ziyatdinov was able to return to Canada by signing with Three Lions Promotions and Lou DiBella, thus sharing the task of promoting him.
The story behind the fight
I love it when I can tell a story in a fight. I believe that each duel has its intrigue, its necessity. Here, it’s magical. The 27-year-old former boxer who just completed a full training camp with Artur Beterbiev gets his chance to shock the world against a ranked boxer and, more importantly, signed with his former promotion. Winning would have a special meaning here.
Prediction:
I expect a close fight in the first half; Ziyatdinov has long arms, can box both as a southpaw and orthodox. Albert Ramirez has a lot of experience as a boxer; he has seen it all in the amateurs. I expect him to be a bit timid at the beginning of the fight, impressed by Canada.
Albert Ramirez 97-93 on all three judges’ scorecards.
