Lopez Upsets Ortiz!
Jose ‘Josesito’ Lopez
By Erik Aguilar/TheKoncreteJungle
Only in boxing can an underdog be given the chance of a lifetime, then take full control and do what Josesito Lopez did last night to Victor Ortiz.
Lopez, coming in as a heavy underdog who was a last minute fill in for a fight that had fallen apart, shocked the world by breaking Victor Ortiz’s jaw, and ultimately causing him to quit on his stool, and capture the 147lb Wbc Silver Welterweight title.
Lopez (30-4, 18 KOs), not only shattered Ortiz’s jaw, but also a potential September 15th, matchup between Saul Alvarez and Victor Ortiz that had been prematurely announced. All Ortiz had to do was get through Lopez first.
“I wanted to shatter their plans for a September 15th fight. You can never look over any opponent, especially me. I was too hungry for this tonight.” Josesito Lopez
From the opening bell, Lopez would dictate a lot of the fight, with Ortiz (29-4-2, 22 KOs) having his moments. The first four rounds were very close, with great back and forth action.
In the 5th, Lopez’s heart was tested as Ortiz seem to blatantly hit him in the back of the head while Lopez was bent over, prompting the referee to call time, and give Lopez a chance to recover from the illegal blow.
“I never thought about quitting. No way, that thought didn’t even come into my head at any point. I just felt a little pain and wanted to give it time to go away, but me quit? Nah, never.- Jose Lopez
In the ninth, while the fight was very close on many ring side observers card, Lopez would end the round hitting Ortiz with a hard shot that seem to leave Ortiz’s jaw hanging a bit. When Ortiz walked back to his corner at the end of the round, he told his trainer Danny Garcia, that he could not continue, then called over the referee and waived the fight off.
At the time of the stoppage, Ortiz was up on all the judges’ scorecards.
In a jr welterweight showdown, Argentina’s Lucas Matthysse (31-2, 29 KOs) scored a 5th round TKO over former world champ, and Mexican Legend Humberto Soto (58-8-2, 34 KOs). Soto seemed to be in control in the early stages of the fight, but Matthysse would use his power to break him down, and everntually drop him in the 5th. Soto would beat the count, walk to his corner at the end of the round and his corner stopped the fight when Soto would not properly respond to their questions.
“I had to stop him. I knew these judges were already looking to rob me on the cards, so I took it out of their hands, and put the fight in mine. I should be undefeated, but instead I’ve been robbed twice in America.” Lucas Matthysse
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