Ortiz wins by KO and Vargas wins vacant welterweight title

ORTIZ photo

By David Martinez / dmboxing.com

 
As expected, WBA interim heavyweight champion Luis Ortiz (25-0 / 22 by KO) knocked out challenger Tony Thompson (40-7 / 27 by KO) Saturday night at the D.C. Armory in our nation’s capitol.

The fight was so one sided and lackluster, that I almost turned off my TV. I kept watching hoping for something that never happened, I’ve seen better sparing sessions.

I kept thinking to myself that if Ortiz is one of the best heavyweights in the world today (as HBO commentators kept reminding us) I thought of a few that never won the heavyweight title that would have cleaned his clock – Earnie Shavers, Ron Lyle, Jerry Quarry, Mac Foster, Gerry Cooney, Oscar Bonevena.

Ortiz sent Thompson to the mat three times in the fight. The third knockdown, a hard left from his southpaw stance, was the end for Thompson in round six.

VARGAS

In the co-feature, Jessie Vargas (27-1 / 10 by KO) won the vacant WBO welterweight championship with a ninth round KO over previously unbeaten Sadam Ali (22-1 / 13 by KO).

The fight was close throughout with Ali controlling the first few rounds with speed and effective combinations.

But as the fight progressed, Ali couldn’t get away from Vargas’ repeated right hand punches. With Ali’s right eye almost swollen shut from the Vargas jab, he was knocked down in round eight and that was the turning point of the fight.

The end came in round nine. Ali went down again, and this time the referee made a good stoppage decision to prevent any further punishment.

The belt that Vargas won is the belt that the WBO stripped from Timothy Bradley for fighting Manny Pacquiao on April 9, next month.

 

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