It was a deluxe version of Johnny Kogasso that we had the pleasure of watching tonight live on Rai Sport, as he showcased his talent in Piazza Pietro Addis, in Trinità d’Agultu e Vignola. “The Mamba” defeated a determined Kevin Cristopher Ramirez on points by unanimous decision, thereby capturing the WBC International Bridgerweight Title. The Italian fighter of Congolese descent therefore enjoyed a hugely successful first outing under his new promotional banner, Alessandra Branco’s Magnesi Boxing Team. These were the judges’ scorecards after the ten rounds, all in Kogasso’s favor: 96-94, 98-92, 97-93.
The two fighters adopted completely different approaches in the opening round. Kogasso was more mobile and active, relying on a high volume of long punches thrown with speed and fluidity, without loading up on them; Ramirez was tighter and more aggressive, preferring to hold the center of the ring and study the situation before suddenly exploding into dangerous attacks, such as the one shortly before the bell that earned him the opening round.
Kogasso quickly realized that against such a tenacious and stubborn opponent, he would not be able to control the fight without getting his hands dirty. So, starting in the second round — an entertaining and evenly contested session — he began putting more power into his punches.
It was in the third round, however, that Johnny really cut loose, unleashing the full breadth of his offensive arsenal and repeatedly punishing the reckless advances of his marauding opponent. Ramirez suddenly found himself caught in a genuine hailstorm of punches and betrayed his frustration by provocatively standing in front of Kogasso after the end of a round dominated by the Italian.
The Mamba’s supremacy continued over the following minutes, although his opponent refused to give up and tried to capitalize on every slight lapse in Kogasso’s concentration in an effort to interrupt his dominance. Ramirez’s discouraged expression after the halfway point, however, seemed emblematic of a fight that the Argentine simply could not turn in his favor.
Showing the trademark toughness of a South American fighter, Ramirez continued to absorb punishment and march forward relentlessly, but even when he managed to pin Kogasso against the ropes, his combinations gave the impression of being more smoke than fire. Johnny proved extremely skilled at taking the sting out of his opponent’s punches with excellent upper-body movement before immediately firing back with crisp, accurate shots.
Some of the right uppercuts landed by the Italian during the fight were particularly spectacular and exciting. He also made excellent use of body punching, an essential weapon in gradually taking the sharpness out of his opponent’s offensive effort. Kogasso’s conditioning was equally impressive: even in the tenth round he was still perfectly capable of bouncing gracefully and nimbly around his opponent as though the fight had only just begun.
Ramirez’s celebration after the final bell struck us, frankly, as rather tiresome. While he certainly deserved applause and praise for his admirable fighting spirit and for continuing to give everything he had until the very end, the Argentine had been clearly outboxed and could hardly have expected the decision to go his way.
In my view, the judges’ margins were actually far too narrow compared with what unfolded in the ring. The 96-94 score returned by one member of the judging panel is frankly difficult to understand, while the 98-92 card was the one that best reflected the true dynamics of the fight.
What Kogasso produced tonight was absolutely remarkable, not only because of the emphatic display of superiority against a highly regarded, undefeated opponent coming off his impressive victory in the Riyadh Boxing Grand Prix, but also because of the enormous and seemingly unstoppable improvements Johnny continues to show every time he steps into the ring.
I have had the opportunity to follow this young man’s career since his amateur days. I called one of his victories from ringside, on commentary, against Francesco Carlozzo at Alessio Taverniti’s Testudo gym, in a fight in which he absorbed several avoidable punches. I watched live on television as he defeated the spirited Sergiu Sinigur, a pupil of Gino Freo, who in 2023 repeatedly managed to trap him in the corner and land dangerous shots. I saw the flaws he had, and with every new appearance inside the ring I noticed how he was gradually ironing them out.
Today, that maturation process reached its highest point yet, and Vincenzo Gigliotti deserves enormous credit for guiding his fighter and providing him with the advice needed to make the most of his potential. Gigliotti has succeeded in transforming a rough pearl into a pure diamond whose true value has yet to be fully revealed.
Credit must also be given to Alessandra Branco for her initiative and entrepreneurial instinct. After Kogasso parted ways with Edoardo Germani’s TAF, she did not hesitate to step in, offering the young fighter the support he needed to continue his climb toward the major goals he has dreamed of achieving since childhood.
Allow me one final observation. According to what Gigliotti himself told us, Clemente Russo had initially chosen Kogasso as the opponent for his return to the ring. After what we witnessed tonight, I feel that the former star of the Italian amateur national team should be breathing an enormous sigh of relief that his proposal was not accepted. Against this version of The Mamba, a 44-year-old Russo coming off five years of inactivity would, in all likelihood, not have heard the bell ending the third round.