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Luis Ortiz refuses to throw in the towel. On Saturday night in Florida, King Kong defeated the dangerous Charles Martin, a former IBF world champion, by knockout in their International Boxing Federation heavyweight eliminator.
At the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Ortiz had to overcome two knockdowns before he cracked Martin with a tremendous shot in the sixth round. Ortz then battered him with heavy punches to score two knockdowns of his own for a stoppage win.
“They said I was old, that Martin was going to beat me, but you see, King Kong will be here for a while,” said Ortiz, who will soon be 43 years old, to George Ebro.
“I don’t know who I’m going to fight, but I want it to be soon. I neither want to nor can I waste time. I think I have secured myself a good fight in the future.”
To many observers, it appeared Ortiz was on his way to a loss after suffering two knockdowns and being outboxed in some rounds, but the Cuban puncher’s corner kept him claim.
“When Luis got to the corner, I calmed him down and told him everything he was doing wrong,” explained Ortiz’s coach, Germán Caicedo.
“I told him that what he wanted was going to come, but he had to box. Do not look for the win with a single punch. He had to use his jab more and move smart.”
It will be interesting to see where Ortiz goes from here. Undefeated danger man Filip Hrgovic could be waiting in the wings. The IBF had ordered a final eliminator between Hrgovic and several fighters, but none of them wanted to face him. Whether or not the sanctioning body will order a final eliminator between Ortiz and Hrgovic remains to be seen.