Virgil Ortiz Jr. says he expects his fight to be against Israel Madrimov”Chess matchNext month when they compete in a 12-round match on February 22 in Riyadh.
Ortiz Jr. (22-0, 21 KOs) will defend his interim junior middleweight title which he was fortunate to obtain in his last fight against Serhiy Bohachuk against former WBA 154-pound champion Madrimov (10-1-1, 7 KOs).
Madrimov's power versus Ortiz Jr.'s speed
Former amateur star Madrimov has the skills and strength advantage over Ortiz Jr., but he doesn't have the same stamina or endurance. If Israel can't throw more and fight harder in the later rounds, Virgil Jr. will get the victory in this match.
As we saw in Madrimov's recent loss to Terence Crawford, he uses a lot of feints and waits too long to land his shots. When Madrimov throws the ball, it's always just one punch. It's not a combination puncher. He feints for 30 seconds, then fires one shot, then starts over. That's why he lost to Crawford, and why he could lose to Virgil.
“I can't tell you how it's going to go. I think it's going to be a chess match, but it's going to be fun. It's going to be fun,” Virgil Ortiz Jr. told Queensberry Promotions. YouTube Channel talks about defending his title against Israel Madrimov on February 22 in Riyadh.
“I think there's a lot of bickering with people. Oh, I see fear,” Virgil Jr. said when asked what he saw during his confrontation with Israel Madrimov. “I'm just there looking at you because I have to. Do you know what I mean? I don't see anything. “This is part of the job or something,” I say to myself and try not to laugh. This is what I'm thinking about. Trying not to laugh or anything. “It's just honesty,” Ortiz Jr. said.
Recent controversies
Both fighters have been in recent bouts and could have easily gone the other way with the tables turned. Madrimov outpointed Terence Crawford, but earned a questionable 12-round unanimous decision on August 3 last year. Virgil Jr. was very fortunate to win a 12-round majority decision over interim WBC 154-pound champion Bohachuk on August 10.
Ortiz Jr. was dropped twice and appeared to lose six of the twelve rounds. Normally, that would mean a loss, but the judges gave it to Virgil, the fighter from the top side, who is now the new interim WBC champion.
Obviously it would have been better if Virgil had clarified the controversy, but he chose not to. This doesn't help his career because fans view him as a tainted partial champion now. Turki Al Sheikh should have insisted that Virgil Jr. give Bohachuk a rematch before he could appear on more of his shows.
