Knockouts galore, Vergil Ortiz Jr. returns to his happy hunting ground on Saturday night

Taking place at the Dickies Arena, it will be the third time Ortiz Jr. has fought at the Fort Worth venue, and in his two previous appearances, Ortiz Jr. has headlined. 

It is also an arena where Ortiz Jr. has thrived and produced entertaining displays as he continued the rise through the ranks to world level. 

Ahead of his encounter against Lubin, DAZN News' Matt Astbury looks back on Ortiz's outings at Fort Worth's Dickies Arena. 

Ortiz Jr.'s right hand overpowers former world champion Maurice Hooker 

In his 17th professional fight, Ortiz Jr. made the step up to face former world super lightweight champion Maurice Hooker in March 2021. 

Going into the contest, Ortiz was yet to be taken the distance by any of his 16 foes and he showed no respect to Hooker early on with his right hand being frequently thrown from the opening bell. 

A confident start saw Ortiz land a combination at the end of the second, but Hooker should be commended as he continued to absorb punishment whilst showing no signs of buckling. 

• Read next | Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs Erickson Lubin: 'The Texas Machine' survives double knockdown to go the distance

Ortiz finally broke through with his barrage, putting Hooker down in the sixth with a right hand. Instead of deterring him, Hooker came out for round seven looking for a scrap, but this worked against him.

Another Ortiz right hand forced Hooker to take a knee and the fight stopped. 

Ortiz was beginning to gain a reputation as someone with explosive hands, and the fact he battered a former world champion into submission saw his stock rise significantly. 

Scrappy Michael McKinson succumbs to Ortiz Jr. body assault 

17 months after stopping Hooker, Ortiz Jr. now faced Britain's Michael McKinson at welterweight.

McKinson was no easy test, undefeated in 22 fights, the Brit was eager to spoil the party in Fort Worth. 

Immediately it was clear that McKinson was aiming to make this fight with Ortiz scrappy with the referee having to separate the two fighters in the first round. With 12 seconds remaining, an accidental clash of heads saw a cut open on Ortiz which could become an area of concern. 

In his corner before the start of round two, Ortiz was instructed by his team to target the body and he did exactly that. 

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There were moments where McKinson found some success in backing up Ortiz, but the latter began to pull off some thumping body shots in round four. 

As McKinson decided to let his movement slide and stay stationary in an attempt to let his hands go, he was an easy target for Ortiz whose left to the body saw McKinson knocked down for the first time in his career. 

The end came in round nine with another Ortiz left flooring McKinson with barely 10 seconds gone. As McKinson rose to his feet, a lower leg issue became prevalent and his team threw in the towel to bring the fight to an end. 

This win over McKinson was another huge positive for Ortiz who proved that he could overcome an opponent who was looking to make a fight a scrappy affair. 

Watch Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs Erickson Lubin live on DAZN

Ortiz Jr. and Lubin clash in Texas this Saturday, November 8, watch it live with a DAZN subscription. Monthly and annual options available.

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