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If you can’t beat Wladimir Klitschko… then sanctioning bodies will just grind out more ridiculous titles to be claimed by willing participants.
So brings us to Thursday night’s clash between Luis Ortiz and Lateef Kayode. A matchup of unbeaten heavyweights should be good enough, but a third version of WBA’s heavyweight title means that the winner will walk away claiming championship status.
Regardless, the matchup itself is a necessary next step for both fighters, as they headline on Fox Sports 1 live from Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Ortiz (21-0-1, 18KOs) looks the part, but has to yet to be offered a viable test against the type of heavyweights that can either confirm potential or expose any flaws. The Miami-based Cuban appears on Fox Sports 1 for his third straight fight, having scored knockout wins over Alex Gonzalez and Monte Barrett in his most recent ring appearances.
Kayode (20-0, 16KOs) was a threat during his stay as an unbeaten cruiserweight contender. Some *****s in the armor surfaced as he struggled to a 12-round draw versus aged former light heavyweight champ Antonio Tarver in June ’12. The official verdict was changed to a No-Decision after Tarver tested positive for a banned substance in his post-fight urinalysis.
Still, the fight itself—or his absurd post-fight rant against Showtime—didn’t cast Kayode in a favorable light. The Freddie Roach-trained Nigerian boxer has fought just twice since then, both coming at heavyweight and against pedestrian opposition.
Read on to see how the staff at BoxingScene.com believes the heavyweight action goes down tonight in Las Vegas. [Click Here To Read More]
So brings us to Thursday night’s clash between Luis Ortiz and Lateef Kayode. A matchup of unbeaten heavyweights should be good enough, but a third version of WBA’s heavyweight title means that the winner will walk away claiming championship status.
Regardless, the matchup itself is a necessary next step for both fighters, as they headline on Fox Sports 1 live from Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Ortiz (21-0-1, 18KOs) looks the part, but has to yet to be offered a viable test against the type of heavyweights that can either confirm potential or expose any flaws. The Miami-based Cuban appears on Fox Sports 1 for his third straight fight, having scored knockout wins over Alex Gonzalez and Monte Barrett in his most recent ring appearances.
Kayode (20-0, 16KOs) was a threat during his stay as an unbeaten cruiserweight contender. Some *****s in the armor surfaced as he struggled to a 12-round draw versus aged former light heavyweight champ Antonio Tarver in June ’12. The official verdict was changed to a No-Decision after Tarver tested positive for a banned substance in his post-fight urinalysis.
Still, the fight itself—or his absurd post-fight rant against Showtime—didn’t cast Kayode in a favorable light. The Freddie Roach-trained Nigerian boxer has fought just twice since then, both coming at heavyweight and against pedestrian opposition.
Read on to see how the staff at BoxingScene.com believes the heavyweight action goes down tonight in Las Vegas. [Click Here To Read More]
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