RAYMOND Ford was not best pleased to discover that Eduardo ‘Sugar’ Nunez, a man who remains firmly on his radar, will defend his IBF world super-featherweight title against Christopher Diaz.
No sooner had ‘Sugar’ claimed his strap – following a unanimous decision victory over Masanori Rikiishi in May, that was – than Ford, 17-1-1 (8 KOs), threw his hat in the ring.
Nunez, 28-1 (27 KOs), offers a come-forward approach, fighting with plenty of aggression and tenacity, whereas ‘Savage’ typically chooses to outmanoeuvre his opponents on the backfoot.
In any case, their potential showdown would likely make for a compelling clash of styles, particularly when considering Ford’s credentials at world level.
The 26-year-old claimed his WBA world featherweight title early last year, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat with a truly stunning 12th-round finish over Otabek Kholmatov.
After that, though, the American – clearly struggling to make the 126lb limit – was forced to suffer his first and only professional blemish against Nick Ball.
Since then, Ford has amassed two comfortable victories against limited opposition at 130lbs, but is now gearing up for a far more meaningful dustup with Abraham Nova.
The pair will square off on the undercard of Moses Itauma vs Dillian Whyte next Saturday, with Ford looking to take himself one step closer towards two-division championship status in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
An obvious matchup, it seems, would be for him to face Matchroom stablemate Nunez, whose maiden title defence against Diaz takes place on September 6.
Regardless of their respective assignments, though, Ford remains unconvinced that Nunez will offer him a shot at his red and gold belt.
“I’ve been trying to press the issue, and wanted to fight him in September, but then saw that they announced [the Diaz fight] for September,” Ford told Boxing News.
“My manager’s told me that I would have to wait 12 to 18 months to get in the ring with him, so I really don’t know what’s going on with him.
“It’s frustrating because they [Matchroom] promote it, or try to promote it, and push the fight – making it seem like it’s going to happen – but they know that it’s not going to happen.”
“I can’t force the world champions to fight me, so all I’ve gotta do is keep winning, keep beating whoever they put in front of me and then, eventually, I’m going to get there.”
