By Keith Idec
VERGIL ORTIZ JR. hoped prior to October 19 that his fight with Tim Tszyu would be rescheduled.
Ortiz understandably turned his attention to the previously unproven champion who thoroughly thrashed Tszyu that night. Higher-profile fights with Terence Crawford and Jaron “Boots” Ennis would earn Ortiz more money and attention, but he would welcome a shot at Bakhram Murtazaliev’s IBF super welterweight title as well.
“As far as the fight between me and him, oh, of course,” Ortiz told Boxing News recently. “You know, I like testing myself. I’m a very competitive person by nature, not just in boxing, like in literally anything. You know, I like to be the best at anything. So yeah, he has a title, so definitely, for sure, I would love to get a crack at that.”
Australia’s Tszyu was a 7-1 favourite (US odds) over Murtazaliev, 23-0 (17 KOs), who sent the stubborn Australian to the canvas four times before referee Christopher Young stopped their scheduled 12-round, 154-pound championship match at 1:55 of the third round. Tszyu’s trainer, Igor Goloubev, threw in the towel as Murtazaliev tattooed a disoriented Tszyu, 24-2 (17 KOs) with punishing punches.
Tszyu took such a brutal beating that Ortiz actually felt sorry for a fearless fighter he was supposed to box August 3 on the Crawford-Israil Madrimov undercard at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. Like most onlookers, Ortiz also admitted he was surprised by the result of their main event at Caribe Royale Orlando in Orlando, Florida.
“I mean, sh*t, he stopped him in three rounds,” Ortiz said. “I mean, like I felt bad for Tim, almost, but I mean, that just happens. You know, boxing, it’s just a sport where you never know what’s gonna happen next and, I mean, I hope Tim bounces back after this. He seems like a good guy. You know, congrats to Bakhram. You know, he showed the world like who he is because I don’t think many people knew who he was. You know, we knew who he was, but like I guess seeing him against another known fighter really opened up people’s eyes.”
Tszyu withdrew from his fight versus Ortiz late in May, soon after it was announced, because the gruesome gash he sustained on the top of his head toward the end of the second round of his 12-round, split-decision defeat to 6ft 6ins southpaw Sebastian Fundora, 21-1-1 (13 KOs), on March 30 needed more time to heal properly. Ortiz instead fended off Ukraine’s Serhii Bohachuk, who dropped the theretofore perfect Ortiz twice, only to lose a split decision August 10 at Mandalay Bay’s Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas.
Ortiz, 22-0 (21 KOs), won the then-unclaimed WBC interim super welterweight title by beating Bohachuk, 24-2 (23 KOs). The Grand Prairie, Texas, native simultaneously displayed resilience and vulnerability by getting up from two knockdowns during his victory over Bohachuk and won their fan-friendly fight on two scorecards (114-112, 114-112, 113-113).
