Interim WBA World heavyweight champion Luis Ortiz (25-0, 22 KOs), the knockout artist from Miami by way of Camaguey, Cuba, fought a stay-busy fight Saturday night at the DC Arena in Washington, DC, against two-time heavyweight challenger and DC native Tony Thompson (40-7, 27 KOs).
It didn’t last long. At 2:29 of the sixth Ortiz knocked Thompson down and out. Ortiz was headhunting all night, but he fought without urgency.
Luis Ortiz is smack-dab in the middle of the WBA box-off, there where the air is rare with the likes of Tyson Fury, Wladimir Klitschko, Alexander Ustinov, Lucas “Big Daddy” Brown, and Fres Oquendo.
We respect Tony Thompson. He’s a tough guy. He’s a smart guy. He used his God-given gifts to the max. He won some and lost others but always acquitted himself. But now, at the age of 44, the clock is ticking. There’s not much time left. He’s not Bernard Hopkins. He isn’t Archie Moore. With too little time to train and too many good meals under his belt, Thompson tipped the scales at 263¾ lbs. He’s a big guy. His 6-foot-5-inch frame can carry that weight, as long as he’s carrying it in the right places.
Ortiz did to Thompson what the Germans did to Poland. But he took his time. He played with Thompson the way a cat plays with a mouse. It was like pulling the wings off a fly. It was painstaking to watch. King Kong dropped Thompson in rounds one, three and six. It was a gimme from the get-go, from the moment the contracts were signed, an easy win, an indifferent win for the WBA champ.
When Thompson regained his bearings, he said about Ortiz, “He is strong as advertised. The guy is as strong as a monster.”
Few fights are like Ali-Frazier. Even fewer are like Dempsey-Firpo. I want catharsis. I want every fight to be like Foreman-Lyle.
Maybe it wasn’t Ortiz’s night. He won the fight, but there is winning and there is winning.
Congrats for retiring Tony Thompson. Someone had to do it and we’re glad that someone was you.
Now that he’s out of the way, a heavyweight tournament needs your attention.
Oquendo and these other guys are calling you out.
(Photos by Sumio Yamada)
This article was penned by the author who is not related to the WBA and the statements, expressions or opinions referenced herein are that of the author alone and not the WBA.
