Deontay Wilder stops Luis Ortiz with another big right hand!
A rematch that wasn’t asked for turned into one of the more anticipated fights of 2019! WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder (41-0-1, 40KO) would attempt his tenth title defense against #3 ranked challenger Luis Ortiz (31-1, 26KO).
REVISITING THE INITIAL ENCOUNTER
In the first fight, outside of dropping Ortiz in the fifth round and ending the fight in the tenth, Wilder was seemingly outboxed in virtually every other round. In the seventh round, he was countered with a left hand over the top that had him wobbling defenseless all over the ring.
The Cuban in a haste, unintelligently punched himself out causing him to be completely gassed in the very next round. This ultimately setup his demise three rounds later.
JUST LIKE THE FIRST FIGHT
One of the glaring changes from either fighter was the decision of the Cuban challenger to come into the fight five pounds lighter. That doesn’t seem to be much but the difference in physique of Ortiz extremely noticeable.
Other than that, the first half of the fight somewhat went the same as the first go around minus the early knockdown suffered by the challenger. The fight was rather dull, however, Ortiz would have the upper-hand round after round behind behind his jab, footwork and ring generalship.
Wilder had an immensely hard time finding the distance and looked very gun shy. As the rounds passed, it looked as if the champion had absolutely nothing to offer. Additionally, he looked to be discombobulated at times while returning to his corner.
THE GAME CHANGER
Then all of a sudden (as we should all be used to saying when it comes to a Wilder bout), while semi-peddling on his back-foot, Ortiz opened up for a split-second. This was long enough for the champ to shoot his signature straight right hand right through the window of opportunity!
The shot would land flush on the chin, putting Ortiz down in a flash. Referee Kenny Bayless patiently counted down the seconds as he gave the Cuban the opportunity to get back to his feet.
He just couldn’t make the count!
After literally losing every round, Wilder’s big right hand saves the day once again! The champ has now defended his title ten times.
He has now surpassed greats like Jack Johnson, Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson to tie Muhammad Ali for the fifth spot on the list of most consecutive title defenses by a heavyweight!
In the post-fight interview, Wilder made it clear the next opponent will be another rematch of another tough bout against former unified champion Tyson Fury February 22!
It’s worth noting that Ortiz was up 58-56 and 59-55 twice on the judges scorecards. However, when a fighter owns the kind of power Wilder has, the scorecards will rarely matter!
By: EJ Williams
