By Luis Sandoval
Last Tuesday during a media conference call, Golden Boy Promotions announced that on September 15th on Showtime pay-per-view, they will pit Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and “Vicious” Victor Ortiz in a mega fight they have called “Knockout Kings”.
Victor Ortiz was on the most recent edition of BoxingScene’s official radio show The Boxing Lab on the eve of the big announcement but Ortiz had only one thing on his mind; June 23rd and Josesito Lopez. When asked about Golden Boy’s announcement and how he felt regarding their confidence in him to announce his next fight while still having to fight in 2 weeks, Ortiz assured that was the furthest thing from his mind.
“I don’t really care what Golden Boy thinks about me. I don’t care what Golden Boy or anyone in the world thinks about me right now. I’m sure Golden Boy has their thoughts, I have mine. I don’t count anybody out” said Ortiz.
“I work hard and yeah, I’m sure they think I’m going to win it. I happen to know [I’m going to win]. I have a very assured team because we’ve been killing ourselves for the last 7-8 months now.”
The fight between him and Alvarez would take place at the Junior Middleweight limit of 154 pounds and for Alvarez’s WBC title. When asked about his thoughts on the move to 154, Ortiz still maintained complete focus on his fight with Lopez.
“As of right now I’m focusing on 147, June 23rd and Josesito [Lopez]. After Josesito we can talk about different things. But as of right now, I’m at 147. Strictly 147. Don’t have trouble making 147. And I’m not heavy at all at 147” Ortiz would tell The Boxing Lab.
When I spoke to Victor Ortiz’s manager Rolando Arellano, he informed me that Ortiz was not even thinking about Canelo for the time being and all his focus and attention was on the task at hand. While the 2nd biggest fight of his career awaits him, you have to credit Ortiz for not jumping the gun and approaching the situation in a professional manner.
His opponent Josesito Lopez however felt disrespected by Golden Boy’s announcement and them thinking it’s a foregone conclusion he will taste defeat when he faces Ortiz. Victor understands where Lopez is coming from as he says he’s been in that situation before. But at the end of the day, that doesn’t concern him one bit.
“I don’t really care what [Josesito] comes up with. I know I prepared to my fullest. I can definitely understand and feel where he’s coming from and why he’s feeling disrespected. It’s just like when I fought Floyd [Mayweather]. Floyd was looking beyond me. Did I feel disrespected? I didn’t really care” said Ortiz.
“It is what it is. He can feel how he wants to but I will be victorious”.
You can listen to Victor Ortiz’s interview in its entirety by listening to The Boxing Lab podcast at: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/boxinglab/2012/06/13/the-boxing-lab-boxingscenes-official-audio-show
You can follow Luis Sandoval on Twitter @Truewest007. You can also tune in to The Boxing Lab, Boxingscene’s official audio show every Tuesday from 6-8PM PST with hosts Ernest Gabion, Luis Sandoval, and Ryan Burton.
