Boxing
Vergil Ortiz Jr. becomes WBC interim super welterweight champ in toughest test of career
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Vergil Ortiz Jr. went the distance for the first time in his career, battling more adversity in the ring than he's ever faced before.
But the 26-year-old superstar in the making managed to rebound from being dropped twice to just edge a rugged Serhii Bohachuk on Saturday night and become the new WBC interim super welterweight world champion.
Judges at Michelob Ultra Arena at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas scored it 113-113, 114-112 and 114-112 for the majority decision in Ortiz's favor as he remained undefeated, improving to 22-0 with 21 knockouts, live on DAZN, in a "Fight of the Year" candidate.
Although Ortiz came out firing, he was clipped with a right hand in the opening round and tasted the canvas with a flash knockdown only for the referee to originally call it a slip. However, upon reviewing the replay, that slip was later turned into an official knockdown, crediting Bohachuk with a 10-8 first round.
Ortiz used pressure, high-volume punching and efficiency to recover well and take several of the early rounds before Bohachuk's brand of relentless punching started to gain traction and the lead in the firefight which had both men trading in the pocket and refusing to back down.
The eighth round proved ultra pivotal as a left hook from Bohachuk made Ortiz's glove touch the canvas for another official knockdown, though Ortiz furiously contested the ruling. Ortiz let his frustration fuel his ferocity the remainder of that round, making it closer than a 10-8, by taking it to Bohachuk.
A few rounds later during the 11th, Ortiz unloaded a huge left hook that wobbled and hurt Bohachuk, though the Ukrainian arguably did enough to take the fight.
After the win, Ortiz still disputed the knockdowns.
"Hey, look, I don't think those should have been knockdowns," Ortiz told DAZN. "The second one, for sure [shouldn't have been]. I don't make no excuses. Anyway, I felt like I did enough. I proved everyone wrong that said I'm washed, I can't fight at 154, I can't go the distance. All of that fueled me."
Bohachuk (24-2, 23 KOs), powered by his two knockdowns of Ortiz, clearly thought he won the bout.
"People saw this fight today," he told DAZN, "and who understand boxing know what happened today."
Here's how the entire Ortiz-Bohachuk main card went.
