This is Rummy's Corner.
Coming up on November 23, 2019 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada - reigning WBC
heavyweight world champion Deontay Wilder will put his title on the line in a rematch
against Luis Ortiz.
The bout will be televised in the United States on Fox PPV.
Wilder and Ortiz first squared off on March 3 of last year, and a lot of things have changed
across the heavyweight landscape since their first fight.
Going into that fight, Wilder and Ortiz were both undefeated and Ortiz was perceived to
be Wilder's biggest challenge to date at that point.
And Ortiz proved to be exactly that.
Ortiz fought a very intelligent fight and he truly tested Wilder before ultimately being
overwhelmed by the devastating power of The Bronze Bomber.
Ortiz rebounded from that loss with 3 consecutive victories.
In his most recent bout, Ortiz defeated Christian Hammer by lopsided 10 round unanimous decision
back in March.
Prior to that Ortiz scored a 10th round knockout against Travis Kauffman in December of last
year.
Ortiz is reportedly 40 years old, and even though he's definitely getting up there in
age, he still remains one of the most talented heavyweight boxers in the game today.
Following the tremendous victory against Ortiz, Wilder went on to face lineal heavyweight
world champion Tyson Fury last December.
That was an epic textbook clash between an outstanding technical boxer and a devastating
power puncher, and the fight was ultimately ruled a draw.
In his most recent fight back in May, Wilder scored a sensational first round knockout
against Dominic Breazeale.
The other major heavyweight scene shifting event happened when Andy Ruiz Jr scored a
shocking upset stoppage victory against former champion Anthony Joshua.
Ruiz and Joshua are scheduled to have their highly anticipated rematch exactly two weeks
after Wilder and Ortiz have their rematch.
The Ruiz-Joshua rematch will be televised on the relatively new streaming app service
known as DAZN.
And there are other interesting things happening in the heavyweight division, including Usyk's
successful heavyweight debut earlier this month.
So these are very exciting times to be a fan of the heavyweight division where things could
be shaping up nicely if the very best of the best seek fights against each other.
Wilder and Fury definitely both have unfinished business.
I personally believe a rematch between Wilder and Fury would ultimately determine the best
heavyweight in the world today, and the fact that their first fight ended in a draw amplifies
this outlook.
Since the draw, Fury holds victories against Tom Schwarz and Otto Wallin.
I hate when championship fights end in a draw without having an immediate rematch.
It was more than 15 years ago when IBF champion Chris Byrd and challenger Andrew Golota battled
it out to an entertaining draw in a fight that was an absolute judging nightmare.
I thought it sucked that Byrd and Golota never had a rematch, and with the Wilder and Fury
situation - it sucks even worse that they didn't have an immediate rematch, because
the stakes were so much higher under an even brighter championship spotlight.
Such is the business of boxing these days.
But while boxing fans are interested in the possibility of a Wilder-Fury rematch, and
while fans are getting excited for the rematch between Ruiz Jr and Joshua - a lot of fans,
myself included, tend to be overlooking how King Kong is situated into this bigger picture.
We shouldn't be overlooking Ortiz, because he's a very smooth operator who previously
gave Wilder one hell of a challenge for his championship.
This is a difficult style match-up for Wilder, as Ortiz proved last time.
Ortiz started the first bout well, and he appeared to be outboxing Wilder in the early
going.
Ortiz was patiently maneuvering his position, and working behind his jab, and landing some
nice counters.
Wilder had difficulty finding a rhythm with his own jab early on, and the two boxers did
a lot of feinting and posturing as they were both looking for openings while showing a
high level of mutual respect for one another.
The intensity level was sky high, and Ortiz was doing well through the first four and
a half rounds.
But in round 5, Wilder dropped Ortiz with a crisp right hand and he seized the momentum.
Wilder was then in control, and he was doing well, until a couple of good right hooks and
a nice left hand from Ortiz rocked him.
Ortiz had Wilder in trouble, and he unloaded a slew of power shots, many of which found
their target.
But Wilder persevered, despite losing the momentum.
Wilder regained command of the fight in round 10 after Ortiz and Wilder simultaneously hurt
one another, but Wilder was more alert and quicker to pounce.
Wilder soon had Ortiz down again for the second time.
Ortiz tried battling on bravely, but it was too late at this point.
Wilder dropped him for the third and final time, and the fight was over.
It was a 10th round stoppage victory for Wilder.
It should be noted that while I personally had Ortiz ahead after 9, the official judges
all had Wilder up by 1 point going into the 10th.
So who will win the rematch between Deontay Wilder and Luis Ortiz?
When I think about this rematch, I can't help but think of this quote from the great Joe
Louis prior to his rematch with Max Schmeling.
I know the two situations are very different,
but the way I see things, Ortiz is now two years older, whereas Wilder is now two years
more experienced.
I would never write Ortiz off completely, but I'm fully expecting Deontay Wilder to
make a statement, and I believe Wilder will have a much easier time coping with Ortiz
this time around.
I'm normally inclined to believe that the better technical boxer is the one who is better
suited to make adjustments in a rematch, but not this time.
Ortiz is a better technician, but I believe Wilder will be the one who is better adjusted
to handle what Ruiz brings to the table this time around.
Wilder obviously has tremendous athleticism and incredible punching power.
Even his biggest detractors are usually willing to admit this.
But when it comes to Wilder - and I've been guilty of this myself - it's kind of like
a donut!
Too many people are paying attention to the hole without seeing the donut for what it
is!
In other words, with Wilder people tend to be focused on his flaws while missing or overlooking
the fact that he has overcome these flaws time and time again.
Wilder isn't just some tall guy who is super athletic and powerful.
In reality, Wilder's biggest asset is one of the intangible variety - specifically his
incredible self-belief that goes well beyond mere confidence.
Whenever things haven't gone his way, Wilder has always hung in there with the belief that
he would find a way to deliver his devastating power.
And so far to date, he's always found a way to do it and has a proven track record of
overcoming adversity.
The notable examples being his first fight against Ortiz, and his bout with Fury, where
in both instances, even though things were not going his way, he still found ways to
eventually land and land BIG.
Deontay Wilder has incredible self-belief.
Wilder has exhibited the mindset of a true champion.
Whether Wilder ultimately proves himself the best heavyweight of this era remains to be
seen.
But the next step for Wilder is against former foe Ortiz, and for my official prediction,
I like Deontay Wilder be early-to-mid round stoppage where I believe Deontay will have
a much easier time finding the mark, and I believe he will ultimately overwhelm Ortiz
with power.
So officially I'm going with Wilder by 4th round knockout, but I honestly wouldn't be
surprised if it was actually much sooner.
If Wilder does indeed emerge victorious, then he will have made history by becoming just
the 6th heavyweight to ever to successfully make 10 or more consecutive title defenses.
That's mighty impressive stuff!
Either way, whatever happens, I'm very fired-up for this rematch, and may the best man win!
November 23 on Fox PPV!
The rematch between Deontay Wilder and Luis Ortiz!
Who do you think will win?
Please share your thoughts in the comments section.
Thanks for watching everyone.
Hope you enjoyed, and have a wonderful night!
This is Rummy's Corner.