by Francisco Salazar |
Raymond Ford will try to win another world title, but in a different weight class.
Ford will face Orlando Gonzalez on Nov. 9, promoter Eddie Hearn announced Friday. The 10-round fight will take place at the Wells Fargo Arena and precedes the main event between IBF welterweight champion Jaron “Boots” Ennis and Karen Chukhadzhian.
On the next Matchroom Boxing show, Jesse Rodriguez will defend his WBC Ring junior bantamweight title and fight Pedro Guevara.
All three fights will be broadcast live on DAZN.
“Featherweight World Champion @raysavage856 moves up to 130lbs in Philadelphia!” Eddie Hearn said in a post on social media. “’The Savage’ and Two Kings… in an incredible show in Philadelphia, November 9th.”
Ford (15-1, 8 knockouts) will fight in front of a biased crowd from his home in Camden, Up-to-date Jersey, across the Delaware River from Philadelphia.
The 25-year-old left-hander won the WBA featherweight world title on March 2, overcoming an early deficit to stop Otabek Kholmatov in the final round. Entering the final round, Ford was trailing 106-103 on two judges’ scorecards.
Ford became the first American fighter to sign an amateur contract and win a world title under the Matchroom Boxing banner. Ford and super middleweight title challenger Diego Pacheco were the first two American fighters to sign with Matchroom Boxing directly from the amateur ranks.
In his first attempt to defend his WBA featherweight title on June 1, Ford lost a split decision to Nick Ball.
The move to 130 pounds shouldn’t come as a surprise, as Ford had been considering moving up one weight class from featherweight following his knockout win over Kholmatov.
Gonzalez (23-2, 13 KOs), who lives in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, last fought on June 28 in a close fight, stopping goaltender Jose Santos Gonzalez in the third round. In his previous fight on November 29, the left-handed Gonzalez won a split decision over Jorge Castaneda.
The 29-year-old has fought his last three fights under the ProBox TV banner. He is the older cousin of undefeated junior lightweight LeBron Henry and has won his last five fights since losing to Misael Lopez in September 2022.