Konstantin Ponomarev Now Set To Face Ramses Agaton

By Jake Donovan

It’s finally fight week for Konstantin Ponomarev.

The unbeaten 23-year old from Russia has been waiting more than six months to hear those words, a bit of a downer since he’s coming off of the biggest win of his career. A surprisingly one-sided decision win over Michal Zewski in their battle of unbeaten welterweights in May marked the last time Ponomarev has seen ring action.

The bout came on a show that aired live on truTV, preceding Floyd Mayweather’s 12-round win over Manny Pacquiao, an event that destroyed every financial and box office mark in the industry and with Las Vegas overrun with media coverage from around the world.

As that fight played on the eve of the most lucrative event in boxing history, this weekend’s ring appearance once again comes amidst an active boxing week in Las Vegas. His upcoming clash versus Ramses Agaton comes on the non-televised undercard of Gilberto Ramirez’ super middleweight clash versus Gevorg Khatchikian, which will air live on truTV this Friday from The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas. One night later, Miguel Cotto defends his middleweight crown versus Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez at MGM Grand, which will air live on HBO Pay-Per-View.

Whatever fight buzz will eventually come later this week hasn’t at all affected Ponomarev’s mindset heading towards his own bout.

“From an emotional standpoint, I’m just happy to get back into the ring,” Ponomarev (28-0, 13KOs) told BoxingScene.com. “I’m on the undercard, just like I was (in May). I’m not the one fighting any of the big names. I’ll save that excitement for my own future when I’m headlining these big events.

“For now, I’m ready and looking forward to fighting this weekend.”

Agaton (17-2-3, 9KOs) comes in as a late replacement for originally scheduled Rico Mueller, who has since instead opted to remain home in Germany where he will fight on a December 11 show in Berlin. A fight with Ponomarev would’ve marked his stateside debut, which the same can now be said for Agaton who has spent his entire career fighting in his native Mexico.

That is where the similarities end between the two, but the switch in opponents is of little concern to Ponomarev. Guided in training camp by top trainer Abel Sanchez and co-promoted by Ural Boxing Promotions and Top Rank, having to worry about anything other than his own in-ring appearance is no longer his concern. 

“What I know about (Agaton) is that he’s a southpaw and overall a good boxer,” Ponomarev mentioned of the latest named opponent, an extensive enough search that pushed him off of the Tim Bradley-Brandon Rios undercard earlier this month. “As for me, I’m ready for anything. The previous fight (versus Zewski), I spent two months training with Abel Sanchez. The result was phenomenal.

“I can’t wait to show everyone the results, having now spent the past four months with Abel training for this fight.”

As for Ponomarev, he simply cannot wait for the opening bell to sound for his first fight in six months.

Jake Donovan is the managing editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox