It was a great night of boxing Saturday night at the Staples Center, well at least for the boxing fans. Josesito Lopez (30-4, 18KOs) from Riverside, CA moved up to welterweight to face Victor Ortiz. What was supposed to be a tune up fight for Ortiz leading up to the mega fight with Canelo Alvarez on September 15 ended with a dramatic twist.
It was a two-way action fight, Ortiz was landing the harder punches but the kid who no one gave a chance kept punching away and by the later rounds was breaking down Ortiz.
In the fifth round, known for his dirty tactics, Ortiz intentionally hit Lopez behind the head sending Lopez to the canvas. Lopez recovered and looked like Lopez was more upset than hurt as he came out swinging and taunting Ortiz to fight him. All week leading up to the fight, Lopez and his team wore T-shirts that read “It Smells Like An Upset,” it sure was. Lopez landed a flush left hook that broke Victor Ortiz’s jaw at the end of the ninth round.
As Ortiz corner refused to stop the fight, Ortiz stood up told the ref he couldn’t continue. This is not the first time Ortiz quits. He quit after being rocked by Marcos Maidana in the sixth round and it’s not the first time a boxer fights with a broken jaw.
Right now you may be thinking, “Ugh, whatever, don’t poop in my soup!” I’m not saying Ortiz pussed out but there have been fighters that have been in worse pain and we’re able to win. At the time of the stoppage, Ortiz was ahead on the scorecards 86-85, 87-84, and 88-83.
Humberto Goes Down for the First Time!
Former world champion Humberto Soto (58-8-2, 34 KOs), who had never been knocked out in his professional career, tasted the canvas for the first time after Lucas Matthysse (31-2, 29 KOs) scored a fifth round TKO.
Soto’s team knew the power Matthysee carried and that is why they asked for a 10 rounder versus the standard twelve. From the opening bell it was Soto who was in command but it wasn’t long for the Argentinean to take control.
Three straight right hands landed before a power punch sent Soto to the canvas just before the end of the round. He beats the count holding on to the ropes as he found his way to his corner to call it a day.
Matthysse scored the best win of his career by not letting the judges have a say. Lucas Matthysee won the vacant WBC Continental Americas super lightweight title.
All Photos by Maria Hedrick / MariaHedrick.com
Looked to me like Ortiz was getting frustrated , he really was not expecting Lopez to still be there as the late rounds arrived. Lopez broke the jaw of Ortiz , it happens quite often in boxing, and depending on the location and severity of the injury the pain level will vary . We shouldn’t judge the courage of Ortiz because he decided to quit due to a severe injury, what does a top level professional fighter need to do to prove himself to boxing fans ? His childhood is proof enough of his determination and courage. Give Lopez the credit for his terrific performance, he broke Ortiz down, the broken jaw was the icing-on-the-cake. I can’t see a lot of big money fights in the future for Ortiz , as young as he is, his best day’s as a fighter are probably over. Ortiz seems like a smart young man, I hope he has the good common sense to step away and move onto a different , safer, and more secure profession, and I hope he doesn’t wait too long to do so.
What seems to be getting lost in all the post fight talk, is that Lopez fought a really smart fight. Every time Ortiz landed a big shot or combo, Lopez seemed to have a perfect counter. Ortiz’ defense was non existent. Awesome job by Lucas Matthysse also. Great night of fights!
Sugar Ray Robinson quit and he didn’t have a broken jaw like Ortiz. Jack Johnson quit and he didn’t have a broken jaw. Roberto Duran quit and he didn’t have a broken jaw. Alexis Arguello quit and he didn’t have a broken jaw. Muhammad Ali fought with a broken jaw but he didn’t know his jaw was broken. Give the kid a break.
Al, unfotunately you are so right!! Victor does not have the heart of a true champion. Its sad that after what he go thru his childhood he could not keep the championship. I wanted him to win because he was going to challenge Canelo. I knew that he did not stand a chance against Canelo, but he was going to make a lot of money. Oh well lets wish him the best.
Victor is one of those fighters who doesn’t quite have it inside to be great. Ortiz is good and competes but cannot suck it up to go the extra mile. Victor is not a champion as he lacks the courage and heart to be great
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