VERGIL ORTIZ is the rising American star knocking fear into the welterweight division.
The Texan has quickly risen through the ranks since his 2016 debut and finished every 18 of his fights inside the distance.
And British fans who are not yet accustomed to Ortiz’s ferocious fists will get a taste on March 19, live on DAZN.
He faces unbeaten Michael McKinson, 27, in California with Portsmouth’s stylish southpaw the latest challenger bravely looking to stop the brutal run of KO’s.
Ortiz, 23, told SunSport: “It’s a fight that I need to have, I need to have one of those fights that’s tricky.
“Not every fight is going to be a war, I think that this is a fight I need for my experience.
“I want to get better and better after each and every fight.”
Ortiz stands as one of the most destructive punchers in the sport right now, but admitted there is no secret remedy to his explosive power.
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He said: “I just try and throw my punches as accurate as possible, and with meaning, that’s basically it.
“I don’t look for it at all, if I do happen to stun the guy or hurt them, then yeah I’ll look for opportunities to finish them off.
“But most of the time I’m just trying to get some good punches in, some good combinations in and I get hit myself.”
Ortiz’s heavy-hands and undefeated record leaves a little line of opponents queuing up to face him – a problem he accepts and acknowledges.
He said: “I wouldn’t say ‘avoided’ – maybe I’m too much of a risk right now with little reward. I don’t have a belt, they have a belt.
“There’s a whole lot of stuff that could go into play and happen.”
Ortiz knows a world title shot would not be given, but rather earned. That is why he is currently ranked No1 in the WBC and WBO.
It places him as the No1 contender for belts held by rivals Errol Spence Jr, 31, and Terence Crawford, 34.
So if Ortiz is ordered into facing either of the pound-for-pound stars, he would have achieved it ‘the hard way’.
He continued: “It feels like you’ve earned it.
“If I had to choose to be in the hardest division in boxing – which is probably 147 – then I would have chose it.
“What’s the point of going into an easy division and winning a world title? Because at that point it doesn’t mean anything.”
Ortiz is surrounded by several other hot prospects, equally as talented in the ring as they are building hype on social media.
But the no-nonsense welterweight, trained by his dad Vergil Sr, will only have his hands do the talking, opposed to his thumbs.
Ortiz said: “If I make a name I’d rather do it through boxing and my fights.
“Some people make videos on the internet and all of that stuff, if I’m going to be a big names it’s because of what I do in the ring, not what I do outside.”
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
