Comments Thread For: Wilder Expects Critics to Make Excuses for His Win Over Ortiz

[BIGPOPPAPUMP]

NEW YORK Deontay Wilder can already hear the criticism he anticipates taking after March 3. Luis Ortiz was too old. The Cuban southpaw hasn't looked as dangerous in recent years as he once appeared and hasn't been nearly active enough. Who knows what the 38-year-old Ortiz has used or hasn't used to enhance his stature before fighting Wilder?
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[Derranged]

And I'm sure many will be making excuses for Wilder if he loses. That's how boxing works unfortunately.

[LacedUp]

Why do people think Ortiz is this undefeatable beast? Because of what exactly? A win over Jennings 3 years ago?

don't understand that. he's a good heavyweight. Nothing more. Same with Wilder really.

[Bronx2245]

Don't worry if they hate you, but you need to worry if they won't pay to see you! On another note, I was very pleased to read about a champion, wanting to do what champions do:

January 30, 2018:

Oleksandr Usyk may have unfinished business in the cruiserweight division but he is already talking about fighting Anthony Joshua...

"I will move up to heavyweight and show them all how good I am," Usyk told Sky Sports.

"I think you can see yourself, I will fight him [Joshua]. Not yet though. But it is a question everybody keeps asking me, so once we go face to face, we will find out. It will be good..."

Usyk has said he will not pile on the pounds to become a heavyweight, aiming for 220lbs.

Smaller men can be the Real Deal at heavyweight

Evander Holyfield, known at The Real Deal, won a bronze light-heavyweight medal at the 1984 Olympics before turning professional a year later.

In 1986, he then won the WBA world cruiserweight title and within two years captured the other two [IBF and WBC] belts. On becoming undisputed world cruiserweight champion in 1988, Holyfield quit the division to pursue a fight against world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson.

He weighed 202 pounds for his first heavyweight fight and was eight pounds heavier two years later when he knocked out James 'Buster' Douglas, who beat Tyson for the belts, to become undisputed world heavyweight champion in 1990.

Usyk has already beat Holyfield's record for being the quickest to become a world cruiserweight champion. Holyfield did it in his professional 12th fight, while Usyk managed it in his 10th.

"In the beginning, somebody told me there was a record in the cruiserweight division where Evander Holyfield became the champion," Usyk said in April last year.

"I thought about that and I told my team, 'let's make our own history, our own record, to beat Holyfield's record.' That was the plan and no, I was not surprised. I was very happy. I prepared for that championship bout.."

Fighting for a cause

Usyk also has the charisma, personality and a fascinating backstory to make it interesting in the heavyweight division.

The father-of-three is from Crimea, a region annexed by Russia in 2014 a year after Usyk turned professional.

Usyk's home city is Simferopol but, with the Crimean peninsula's status disputed between Russia and Ukraine, he now lives in Kiev.

In 2014, he declared he would never accept Russian citizenship and in October he visited Ukrainian guards on the eastern border.

http://www.espn.com/boxing/story/_/i...vyweight-crown

Props to Usyk for stepping up to the challenge! That's what real champions do!

[Bronx2245]

Why do people think Ortiz is this undefeatable beast? Because of what exactly? A win over Jennings 3 years ago?

don't understand that. he's a good heavyweight. Nothing more. Same with Wilder really.

I guess you could say the same for Wladimir Klitschko. What was his career-defining win? And if Joshua's big win was a 41-yr. old Wladimir Klitschko, what does that say about him?

[LacedUp]

I guess you could say the same for Wladimir Klitschko. What was his career-defining win?

Well for starters Klitschko has about 15 championship fights against legit top 10 opponents.

Wilder has one and Ortiz has 0.

So yeah, no.

[DougalDylan]

Seriously just look at Vlads record why do you think DW ducked him when he got the belt.

Ortiz has looked flat in his last three fights, he's still decent but no bogey man.

I guess you could say the same for Wladimir Klitschko. What was his career-defining win? And if Joshua's big win was a 41-yr. old Wladimir Klitschko, what does that say about him?

[Boxing Logic]

Facts are not excuses. If Deontay Wilder wants credit for fighting an A-level, prime opponent for the first time in his career, then he needs to fight an A-level, prime opponent for the first time in his career, instead of a 38 year old Luis Ortiz who has not looked dangerous in years, and who may have only ever looked good in the first place because of PEDs, which he can no longer take on VADA.

Wilder had plenty of chances to fight and beat a top opponent like that, such as Vitali and Vladimir Klitschko, but Wilder ducked them for years and waited until one retired before conveniently becoming mandatory for the vacated title only right after Klitschko retired. Before then, Al steered him clear of the mandatory position because it would have meant a fight with Klitschko, which they obviously didn't want. I'm sorry, but beating past prime, past-PEDs Luis Ortiz is not going to erase years and years of ducking actual top competition.

[mrlopez]

Wilder is delusional. Hes been a belt holder for 3 years with 39 fights under his belt and this is his 1st real test, yet he wonders why nobody takes him seriously? Dem country bumpkins are really slow

[Straightener]

“ I never really got credit with nobody”

Your best win is stiverne .... you earn credibility

Ortiz is a step in the right direction . Don’t f**k it up