So much has happened since Luis Ortiz was taken out by Deontay Wilder in their return fight. First of all, Wilder was beaten up and dethroned by Tyson Fury, then the whole world changed due to the coronavirus and the subsequent lockdown. But though it all, Cuban heavyweight Luis Ortiz has continued to train.
An interesting piece from el Nuevo Herald reports how the 41 year old southpaw has been working out in the gym he has had built at his home. Ortiz tells Jorge Ebro that he is aiming to fight twice this year, and that he hopes to be back in either August or September. Ortiz has even thrown his hat into the ring as far as fighting the supposedly soon to return Mike Tyson.
“I have stayed at home like everyone else,” Ortiz said. “But I have remained active, with adequate physical preparation. I already have my ring at home and I do exercises there. I have been told that I could return to combat between August or September. In any case, I will be ready. I’m going against whoever and whoever wants [it]. There’s a lot of talk about Mike Tyson’s return now. If he wants, I’ll even go against him. I just need a name and a date.”
No way will Tyson go near Ortiz, that fight would be far, far too dangerous for the former champ; even if plenty of people will tell you Ortiz is in fact a good deal older than his officially listed 41 years. According to the article, two or three potential opponents “are being studied.” It is to be hoped Ortiz can indeed come back before the end of this year. Time is running out on the Cuban, his chances of getting another title shot growing slimmer by the month.
But matching Ortiz can prove to be a tough job. On the one hand, he is very dangerous, on the other he brings in no real reward for the man trying to beat him. Ortiz against Andy Ruiz has great fight written all over it, but will Ruiz take the risk with no big reward? It’s probably more likely that Ortiz will fight a decent B-level or C-level opponent upon his return.
Ortiz, 31-2(26) has been out of action for six months and he seems eager to get himself a fight. Who can blame him.
