While the dust on Luis Ortiz’s birth certificate had begun to accumulate considerably, the Cuban native expressed his confidence heading into his matchup against Andy Ruiz Jr.
Determined to successfully climb his way back up the heavyweight ladder, the 43-year-old viewed their clash as a must win. A packed crowd at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California last night was on its feet as the two powerfully built big men pummeled each other for 12 rounds.
The end result, ultimately, was not to Ortiz’s liking as Ruiz (35-2, 22 KOs) recorded the unanimous decision victory. A visibly dejected Ortiz walked side by side with his head trainer, Herman Caicedo, outside the arena after the decision. Although Caicedo was pleased with his Cuban star’s overall performance, he believes it was Ruiz’s timely, damaging power that tipped things in his favor.
“He got caught early a couple of times, cold a couple of times,” Caicedo told FightHype.com. “One shouldn’t have been a knockdown, it was a push but two legitimate knockdowns, absolutely. Even with those takedowns, the fight was close.”
With a victory over Ortiz now on his record, Ruiz has begun looking for a matchup against former WBC heavyweight belt holder Deontay Wilder. The Alabama product huddled in his front row seat and cheered Ortiz loudly. Having shared the ring with him twice, Wilder, 36, has developed a fondness for Ortiz and his ability in the ring.
Now, with Ortiz vs. Ruiz in the rearview mirror, Wilder (42-2-1, 41 KOs) will look to hole up in training camp as he prepares for his return to the ring on Oct. 15 against Robert Helenius. If he succeeds, Wilder knows full well that a matchup with Ruiz could be next on his agenda.
Caicedo, however, shakes his head in disbelief when asked if the Mexican star has any chance of defeating Wilder. Considering Ortiz’s two attempts to dethrone Wilder ended in catastrophic disaster for the skilled southpaw, Caicedo firmly believes Ruiz will suffer the same fate.
“Wilder is going to knock him out.”
