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Maurice Hooker clearly could’ve taken a safer fight in his debut as a full-fledged welterweight.
The former WBO junior welterweight champion ultimately determined that upsetting a heavily hyped contender like Vergil Ortiz Jr. would do much more for his career than beating a lesser fighter. Hooker recognizes that this fight is very risky, yet the Dallas native also knows it’ll be well worth the danger if he can perform Saturday night the way he and his handlers are confident he can.
“I think it’s a good fight,” Hooker told BoxingScene.com. “You know, me moving up 147, I wanna be the best, so I wanna fight the best. I think this is a good fight for me to show I’m still in the running to be a world champion at 147.”
Jose Ramirez, Ortiz’s teammate at the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy in Riverside, California, knocked out Hooker in the sixth round of their 140-pound title unification fight in July 2019 at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas. Ramirez (26-0, 17 KOs) – while an undefeated, unified champion in the junior welterweight division – doesn’t punch as hard as the imposing Ortiz.
The 5-feet-11 Hooker feels fresher and stronger at welterweight, however, after years of squeezing down to the junior welterweight limit. He also is the most accomplished opponent Ortiz has agreed to box since he made his pro debut in July 2016.
Still, the 22-year-old Ortiz is one of the most promising young boxers in the sport. The hard-hitting Grand Prairie, Texas, native takes a perfect record (16-0, 16 KOs) into their 12-round main event Saturday night at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas (DAZN; 9 p.m. ET).
A respectful Hooker heaped praise upon the emerging Ortiz, who is a 12-1 favorite according to the William Hill sports book.
“To be the best, you’ve gotta fight the best,” Hooker said. “Shoot, I think he’s the perfect opponent. He’s got a lot of buzz about him. He’s 16-0, 16 knockouts. He’s up and coming, everybody’s talking about he’s got power, this and that, and I think this is a good opponent for me to beat and put my name up there for a world title shot at 147.”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.