Hooker Embraces Long Overdue Home Clash vs. Jose Ramirez

By Jake Donovan

Three fights into his present title reign, there was no time like the present for Maurice Hooker to enjoy a homecoming.

His promoters made good on that promise in a very big way.

The unbeaten World Boxing Organization (WBO) 140-pound titlist will return to the greater Dallas area for a July 27 unification bout versus Jose Ramirez, who puts his World Boxing Council (WBC) title at stake. The bout—easily the biggest fight of his eight career—will headline a live DAZN-streamed event at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas.

“Our first time together didn’t get off to a great (promotional) start, as we lost a purse bid for his first title defense,” Eddie Hearn, Hooker’s co-promoter along with Roc Nation Sports revealed of the start to their working relationship  during Friday's press conference in Arlington, Texas to formally announce the fight. “But he went to Oklahoma City, the hometown of Alex Saucedo where he scored a sensational (7th round) knockout to defend his World Boxing Organization light welterweight title.

“After another title defense (12-round win over Mikkel LesPierre this past March in Verona, NY, also on DAZN), we told him the next one would take place at home. We didn’t imagine (at the time) we’d be delivering a fight this big… it is an absoiute A-star matchup, one that both teams wanted for a long time.”

Hooker (26-0-3, 17KOs) hasn’t fought in his Dallas home region since his last fight before entering the title fray, scoring a 10-round decision win over then-unbeaten Courtney Jackson in Aug. 2017.

His first two title fights both came with conceding hometown advantage. Hooker traveled to jolly old England to win the vacant WBO title, doing so in the Manchester, England hometown of unbeaten former lightweight titlist Terry Flanagan to do so. Five months later came his aforementioned knockout win over previously unbeaten Saucedo and then the win over LesPierre earlier this year.

From there, came the team-wide decision that it was time he gets to host a title fight.

“Eddie and I talked. We said we want to bring Maurice back home,” noted Dino Duva of Roc Nation Sports. “He hasn’t fought here in a long time, and he deserves it. You can’t ask for a better matchup for this area.”

Ramirez (24-0, 16KOs) became a surprise choice in terms of notable super lightweights willing to hit the road. The unbeaten 26-year old—whom represented the United States in the 2012 London Olympics—is a huge attraction in California’s Central Valley region, having regularly filled up arenas since his days as a rising prospect.

Like Hooker, Ramirez reached a point in his career where it was time to chase the bigger fights. With the division’s best two other options—fellow unbeaten titlists Regis Prograis and Josh Taylor—tied up in the World Boxing Super Series awaiting a date and location for their finals matchup—the remaining two titlists turned to each other.

“Seeing the fighters here today, this is a fight they wanted,” Hearn noted.

Now that he has the title fight homecoming he’s craved, Hooker plans to seize the moment in a big way.

“July 27 is gonna be a hell of a fight,” insists the Dallas native, who turns 30 shortly after fight night. “Y’all just gonna see the best of me, the best of Ramirez. May the best man win. I’m doing it for my family. I’m ready man. We’re gonna show everybody what we about, and I’m not leaving without that WBC belt.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox