Golden Boy, HBO High On Luis Ortiz' Future

By Jake Donovan

Verona, NY – You can’t blame the staff at Golden Boy Promotions for gushing at the sight of their fighters coming up big any given fight these days. It’s been an exhausting past couple of years as the California-based outfit continues to rebuild in hopes of reclaiming and maintaining its position as one of the leading promotional companies in boxing today.

There were plenty of bumps and bruises along the way following a corporate implosion last spring, leading to the forced resignation of longtime CEO Richard Schaefer and followed by founder and President Oscar de la Hoya cleaning house to the point of only surrounding himself with those he can fully trust.

It also meant watching a massive amount of talent walk out the door. The majority of fighters they’ve represented through the years were contractually bound to adviser Al Haymon and technically promotional free agents.

The past several months have steered Golden Boy back on the right track. Included among its recent run are big wins by Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, Francisco Vargas and unbeaten heavyweight Luis Ortiz, the latter whom annihilated top contender Bryant Jennings in the 7th round of the final HBO telecast of 2015 this past Saturday at Turning Stone Casino in Verona, New York.

"Our message has been very, very clear. With all the boxing on TV right now, it's a little oversaturated. All we can do is make big fights," noted Eric Gomez, vice president of Golden Boy Promotions. "We win some, we lose some. We lost with Lucas Matthysse (stopped in 10 rounds by Viktor Postol on October 3rd), we lost with David Lemieux (stopped in eight rounds by Gennady Golovkin on Oct. 17th).”

Lately, Golden Boy has been winning quite a few, including the aforementioned trio of big wins. Alvarez’ conquering of Miguel Cotto earned him the World middleweight crown, whereas Fernando Vargas became a major player in the 130 lb. division following his Fight of the Year-level come-from-behind 9th round knockout of then-WBC titlist Takashi Miura, both of which came on the same Las Vegas show in November.

Ortiz’ win carries a special feeling for a number of reasons. First, it was redemption for a heavyweight who began the year riding out a suspension due to testing positive for a banned substance following a knockout-win-turned No-Contest versus Lateef Kayode. As it relates to Golden Boy, they now once again have a major player in the heavyweight division.

They watched that ship previously sail with Deontay Wilder walking away along with dozens of other fighters in the company’s still messy divorce with Haymon. Wilder won his portion of the heavyweight title while still on Golden Boy’s watch, having promoted his 12-round unanimous decision over Bermane Stiverne.  He’s no longer a part of the stable, but it still helped begin a year that has come full circle.

“We began 2015 with a world heavyweight title fight, and we end the year the same way,” Bernard Hopkins, the legendary former two-division champ and current managing partner of Golden Boy Promotions pointed out to BoxingScene.com. “Say what you want about his title (Ortiz holds a secondary heavyweight belt), but he is among the best heavyweights in the world right now.”

The trick now will be to keep Ortiz (24-0, 21KOs) active. That wouldn’t have been an issue at all prior to the fallout between Golden Boy and Haymon, which now has a $300 million lawsuit attached.

That said, the insistence from the top is to continue to make big fights.   

“Anyone that wants to fight Luis Ortiz, we are going to work our hardest to make that happen,” Gomez insists, even if it means finding a way to do business with any heavyweights currently fighting under Haymon’s Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) model. “Let me repeat that – Luis Ortiz will fight anybody! And if he wants a fight, it will be our job to go make it happen.”

In knocking out Jennings, the 36-year old southpaw – built like a tank but moves like a welterweight – emerges as a fresh face among a heavyweight division undergoing a remarkable transformation. It began with Wilder, has continued with Tyson Fury upsetting Wladimir Klitschko to snatch the World heavyweight crown last month and most recently Anthony Joshua looking like an Olympic Gold medalist ready to lay claim as a major player in boxing’s most storied division.

Ortiz emerging towards the top adds yet another dynamic.

“I think after a performance like that, the sky's the limit for him,” said recently promoted HBO Executive Vice President Peter Nelson to BoxingScene.com at the post-fight press conference. “The thing about fighting on TV, knockouts sell. It was a riveting fight and spectacular knockout. It closed a great year of fights for us.

“It was a great statement (by Ortiz). The VADA testing both (Ortiz and Jennings) agreed to sends the right message in the sport, especially when you get a knockout ending like this.”

Such praise was music to Ortiz’ ears, as he knows where he plans to call his network home for as long as he’s able to make noise in the heavyweight division.

“I don't care who's next,” Ortiz told BoxingScene.com just prior to being summoned for a final sample for random drug testing. “It can be Tyson Fury, Deontay Wilder, Wladimir Klitschko. I just want the best. Line 'em all up and I'll fight them. I invite all of them to come fight me on HBO.”

Jake Donovan is the managing editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox