Dmitry Bivol has been amused by Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez’s borderline brashness.

The WBA light heavyweight champion from Russia will defend his belt against Mexico’s Ramirez this Saturday in Abu Dhabi.

In the lead-up to the fight, Ramirez, a former champion at 168, has spoken boldly about defeating his former sparring partner.  

The typically unflappable Bivol (20-0, 11KOs), however, has not shown much interest in reciprocating the bluster.

“I don’t know why he’s so confident,” Ramirez said in an interview with FightHubTV. “For me, it doesn’t matter. Maybe because he never lost. Maybe he wants attention, some. It doesn’t make sense now. It’s all about fighting. It’s all about actions in the ring. I can say whatever I want, I should prove it in the ring.”

“I don’t like [trashtalking],” Bivol added. “If he wants, he can talk. It doesn’t matter to me.”

The 32-year-old Bivol, in fact, if anything else, mostly congratulatory toward his southpaw adversary. Bivol commended Ramirez on his penchant for volume punching.

“He (Ramirez) has a good body punches,” said Bivol, who is coming off a banner win last May, when he defeated Canelo Alvarez by unanimous decision. “He throws not just one hard punch. He uses combinations. Usually he uses three, four punches. It’s interesting. It’s harder when your opponent throws more punches, not one.”

“I’m really looking forward to this fight,” Bivol continued. “I really want to show my skills against Zurdo. It’s not just beating him. I’m excited to see his skills in the ring, in the fight.”

Bivol originally appeared to be in line to face Anthony Buatsi this fall, on the express interest of his promoter Eddie Hearn, but the WBA enforced Ramirez’s mandatory standings in the rankings. Ramirez is backed by Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions.

The 31-year-old Ramirez (44-0, 30 KOs) secured his place to fight Bivol for his WBA belt after demolishing Dominic Boesel in the fourth round in May.