You can't fight Cojanu and Kauffmann then complain the elite boxers are ducking you. Title shots need to be earnt. Fight somebody like Parker or Povetkin, then if Ortiz wins he can say he deserves a shot at the top dogs.
Right now he has a uninspiring resume, had a title shot and got KTFO, and has done nothing since.
Joshua Whyte would sell well and I think that will be the April fight. Out of all the contenders I think Whyte deserves a title shot the most.
A Takam fight would be great for Hunter if the rumours are to be believed.
Also Hunter is listed is 6 ft 2, same height as Povetkin. There's room in heavyweight for skilled fighters of that height.
It makes me laugh how people get so emotionally caught up in this who is ducking who argument.
The promoters are playing you like puppets on a string. The Joshua Wilder fight could have been made this year, but playing the whole saga out in the media, with an army of fanboys on either side constantly bashing the other side builds up the excitement and interest for when it eventually happens. And when the two fight, which they will because it makes too much money for them to not make it, the fight will make so much more money than if it was made in 2017 or 2018.
Promoters marinate fights to make people crave them, so that more PPVs are bought. Everything coming out from Hearn, Haymon, Finkel is just to ramp up the interest. If you're smart you wouldn't trust a word any of them says. You have to read between the lines and be capable of some original thought, rather than taking exactly what either side says at face value and using it as a stick to bash the other.
I don't see it being Whyte or Miller. I'm fairly confident Whyte will face AJ in April providing he beats Chisora. Regardless of whether or not Whyte is the April opponent, that rematch with AJ is most likely going to happen. So therefore why would Whyte risk defeat to Usyk scuppering his title shot at AJ.
Likewise it's apparent that Miller is being groomed by Hearn as the opponent for which Joshua will make his US debut against. Hearn and Miller will take the path of least resistance until that AJ fight.
Ortiz is a very tough gig for a heavyweight pro debut, so I think we can discount him. He's too high risk for Usyk's first fight at the weight level.
Kownacki is a possibility but he isn't well known.
Therefore the obvious fight is Usyk Chisora. Chisora is known to the UK public where Hearn I think will look to showcase Usyk. Both fighters will be coming off the back of headlining UK PPVs. Usyk should get a win and a first taste of increased weight, Chisora can probably retire with a nice payday, Hearn has helped navigate Usyk onto the first rung of the ladder leading to AJ, without disrupting any of AJ's future opponents/pay days. It's win-win.
Joyce is in his athletic prime so probably thinks it detrimental to build his career slowly. Time has caught up with Ortiz and he looks to be declining.
As others have said as well, Ortiz's record is pretty poor for the supposed boogeyman of the division.
This could be a war if it happens and I'd love to see it.