Well before the coronavirus pandemic halted sports in the United States in March, Top Rank had to make a decision. On Jan. 23, unified junior welterweight titleholder Jose Ramirez was preparing to fly to Haikou, China, to face Viktor Postol. A call came: Stay home. The fight was off.
A similar call went to Postol, who had landed with his team in China earlier that day. Get back on a plane. The illness sweeping through Wuhan was spreading.
That was the first of many cancellations in sports worldwide. From March until June, boxing has essentially been shut down.