Jose Luis Ramirez vs Terrence Alli

José Luis Ramírez regained the World Boxing Council lightweight championship at Saint-Tropez, France, on July 19, 1987, when he defeated Terrence Alli by a close but unanimous decision over 12 rounds. The title had become vacant after Héctor Camacho relinquished it while moving out of the lightweight division. Ramírez, the experienced Mexican southpaw, and Alli, the Guyana-born New Yorker, each weighed 134 pounds, although one contemporary record listed Alli at 134½. Tony Perez was the referee, with Harold Lederman, Tony Castellano and Rudy Ortega appointed as judges.

For Ramírez, it was an opportunity to recover the championship he had taken from Edwin Rosario in November 1984 and lost to Camacho nine months later. He had remained active in France after that defeat and entered the contest with considerably more experience than his challenger. Alli, aged 27, was making his second attempt to win a major lightweight championship. He had challenged Harry Arroyo for the International Boxing Federation title in 1985, beginning well before being stopped in the 11th round. His quick hands, movement and willingness to work at close range made him an awkward opponent, but he had previously shown a tendency to lose effectiveness when forced to fight for long periods under pressure.

Alli made a better beginning in Saint-Tropez. He was the sharper man in the opening two rounds, moving around the slower-footed Ramírez and punching first before changing position. Ramírez advanced from his southpaw stance, carrying his gloves high and looking to bring his right lead into play, but Alli’s quicker starts and cleaner combinations enabled him to establish an early advantage. Lederman and Ortega awarded Alli both of the first two rounds, while Castellano gave him the first but preferred Ramírez in the second. The difference in method was already plain. Alli sought space, speed and a brisk rate of punching; Ramírez intended to narrow the ring and make the contest increasingly physical.

The third and fourth rounds remained closely contested. Ramírez began to place his feet nearer to Alli before punching and was more successful in cutting off the challenger’s exits. Alli continued to score in bursts, particularly when Ramírez followed him in straight lines, but the Mexican was making him work harder for every opening. The judges were divided over the third, with Lederman and Ortega giving it to Ramírez and Castellano, and Alli. Alli took the fourth on Lederman’s and Castellano’s cards, while Ortega favoured Ramírez. There was little between the men at that stage, although Alli’s speed had given him the more conspicuous successes.

Ramírez’s persistence began to tell during the middle portion of the fight. He was never a boxer who depended upon elaborate movement. His strength lay in his ability to advance behind a compact guard, absorb what came back and keep punching with sufficient weight to discourage an opponent. In the fifth round, he worked closer to Alli’s body and prevented him from completing his combinations without being answered. The sixth, seventh and eighth rounds formed Ramírez’s best sustained passage. Alli still landed the quicker individual punches, but he was being forced to retreat more often and had less time to set himself up. Ramírez kept a steady pressure upon him, striking to the body and head and making the challenger fight at a pace that was becoming increasingly uncomfortable. Lederman and Castellano gave Ramírez all four rounds from the fifth through the eighth. Ortega scored the fifth even but also awarded Ramírez the sixth, seventh and eighth.

Alli recovered sufficiently to make another stand in the ninth and tenth. He increased his activity, met Ramírez’s advance with combinations and moved away before the Mexican could reply at length. All three judges awarded Alli both rounds, bringing the contest back into close balance. Ramírez was still moving forward, but during this period, his pressure did not always produce the cleaner work. Alli’s punches lacked the damaging effect of the Mexican’s heavier blows, yet they were accurate enough to win rounds and to keep the vacant championship in dispute.

The 11th was another important round. Lederman gave it to Ramírez, while Castellano and Ortega marked it for Alli. By the beginning of the last round, the official cards were close enough for neither corner to be certain of the result. Ramírez, however, finished with the greater force. He maintained his advance, drove Alli backwards and produced his most decisive attack in the final minute. A series of punches staggered the challenger and left him under pressure as the bell approached. Alli remained upright and completed the distance, but his late distress provided the clearest single passage of the contest. Lederman and Ortega scored the final round 10–8 for Ramírez, despite there being no knockdown, while Castellano gave the Mexican the round 10–9. Contemporary reports likewise noted that Alli had shown early strength, that Ramírez’s steady pressure carried the later stages, and that the challenger was badly shaken during the closing minute.

The verdict was unanimous but narrow. Harold Lederman scored the fight 114–113, while Tony Castellano and Rudy Ortega each returned totals of 115–113. The decision reflected the shape of the contest: Alli’s quick beginning and revival in the ninth and tenth against Ramírez’s stronger work through the middle rounds and his commanding finish. There had been no knockdowns and no serious question of a stoppage until Ramírez’s final assault, but the Mexican had imposed himself for the longer stretches and appeared physically stronger when the championship rounds arrived.

Ramírez thus became WBC lightweight champion for the second time. Alli had again competed well in a world-title contest without quite sustaining his early advantage. He left Saint-Tropez with his reputation intact, having taken an experienced former champion to a one-point margin on one card and two-point margins on the others. Ramírez had not won easily or stylishly, but his patience, durability and continued pressure had overcome Alli’s speed. Three months later, he made his first defence against Cornelius Boza-Edwards in Paris, winning by a fifth-round knockout, and his second reign continued until his 1988 unification contest with Julio César Chávez.