Former world titleholder and the always unpredictable Victor Ortiz returns on a special Sunday evening PBC on FS1 card against journeyman Saul Corral. That isn’t necessarily an interesting fight, but one loss prospect Justin DeLoach is one of the more underrated young fighters in the sport. He is the co-feature against talented, albeit fragile former multiple time title contender Fernando Guerrero.
Victor Ortiz (31-6-2, 24 KOs) is who he is. Still only 30, he can’t be considered a top welterweight. He just doesn’t have the wins. His best win by far was his 2011 fight of the year contending win over Andre Berto. The fight was so good that it even briefly salvaged Ortiz’s reputation as an extremely mentally weak fighter. Yet, there is little else, and nothing positive at all since that night.
Ortiz was stopped in three straight fights following that night. First Mayweather knocked him out in four after some absolute craziness involving intentional headbutts, hugging, kissing, and a cheap shot. I am sure you have seen it. Next he lost to Josesito Lopez, quitting after an injury. Finally, he was knocked out in two by Luis Collazo without trying to get up. He came back with two wins against club fighters before rematching Andre Berto in April.
After a great start in which he dropped Berto in the second, Ortiz was dropped twice in the fourth. When asked if he wanted to continue after the second knockdown, he just stared blankly and the fight was rightfully stopped. For anyone else it wouldn’t have gotten a second thought, but for someone with the reputation as a quitter, it didn’t look great.
None of this matters though. Ortiz’s opponent Saul Corral (25-9, 15 KOs) is just not a good fighter. For example, boxrec’s computers rank him as the 37th best welterweight… in Mexico. He beats club fighters, mostly guys with losing records, and he gets dominated by good fighters. That is what Corral is here to do, be dominated. Victor Ortiz cannot possibly lose this fight; he could try to quit and win on accident. These two do not belong in a ring together.
The co-main event features one of my favorite prospects though, so watch for that fight and then just stick around just in case Victor Ortiz finds a new, more creative way to implode.
Justin DeLoach (17-1, 9 KOs) was never supposed to be a big time prospect. He was a decent amateur, but not a star. Not only that, but in his eleventh fight he suffered a third round knockout loss to a 7-2 fighter. That normally would seal it, but not for DeLoach. First he got a ShoBox appearance alongside local favorite Dillon Cook. That fight ended with a brutal, spectacular KO in DeLoach’s favor. Next he was matched against unbeaten Olympian Junior Castillo as his opponent. Again he turned the table, score a wide, easy decision. Last September he was matched with another high quality prospect, Dominique Dolton, and again he won a fight he wasn’t supposed to. Finally, in February, he was matched in a fight as the A-side against also once beaten Chris Pearson. DeLoach blew him out in two.
Fernando Guerrero (28-4, 20 KOs) is a pretty talented fighter, but his chin is his fatal weakness. He has been stopped in all four of his losses and down in a bunch of his wins. It really only is top talents that have finished the job and won, however, so he will be able to serve as an excellent barometer for DeLoach. Most recently, Guerrero was stopped in six by Tony Harrison last March. He started that fight terribly, looking very tentative, before rallying well in the middle. Unfortunately, it didn’t matter as his chin betrayed him once Harrison found it in the sixth.
Remember, this card has a strange time and date. 7 PM Eastern on Sunday on FS1 in Bakersfield, California. Sure, it isn’t a great one, but what else do you have to do at that time?
