Jamaine Ortiz talks post Lomachenko fight and desires of being two division champ
Jamaine Ortiz talks post Vasiliy Lomachenko fight and desires of being two division champion.
On Saturday night, boxing returns to the Madison Square Garden in NYC, specifically the Hulu Theater inside the iconic arena. Top Rank and ESPN will host a big super-lightweight title fight between IBF champion Josh Taylor (19-0) and former unified lightweight champion Teofimo Lopez (18-1). On the undercard is a fighter familiar with the Hulu Theater (he last fought there in October) which is lightweight contender Jamaine ‘The Technician’ Ortiz (16-1-1). He will make his Top Rank debut against 23-year-old Humberto Galindo (14-3-1).
Ortiz is a fighter who was primarily known in the northeast region of the country while fighting under CES Boxing which is owned by long-time boxing promoter Jimmy Burchfield Sr. Ortiz had a breakout year in 2022 as he scored victories over Nahir Albright (15-2) & former super featherweight champion Jamel Herring (23-4). In October, though, he suffered his first career loss against Vasiliy Lomachenko (17-3). That loss was a victory for Ortiz as he was able to hang with the great Lomachenko and gave him one of his toughest tests.
Everyone was buzzing over Ortiz’s valiant effort, which led to Top Rank doing a co-promotion deal with CES Boxing and Ortiz in May. “We’ve been working with them for a while already. Most of my fights with other promotions have been with Top Rank. We see an opportunity there in the lightweight division when it comes to titles. There are bigger fights there, like with Shakur Stevenson or a possible fight with Devin Haney if he decides to stay,” said the 27-year-old Ortiz.
Jamaine Ortiz vs. Humberto Galindo will stream live on ESPN+
Buckle up...
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) June 5, 2023
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With all of the attention after the Lomachenko fight, did Ortiz feel the change in how he was viewed as a fighter? Ortiz told FanSidedMMA, “I just think it was more exposure. Obviously, exposure & media is always going to be a win. Sometimes they say that bad publicity is good publicity. That’s what I hear when someone says winning from a loss. People are appreciating my talent and skills. People who didn’t know who Jamaine Ortiz was now know because of my performance, even though it wasn’t a win. I got a lot of new fans out of it.”
As Ortiz returns to the Hulu Theater, he now faces a young, heavy-handed contender in Galindo. Ortiz is not taking him lightly and knows he has to stay smart and sharp, as Galindo knocked down undefeated prospect Raymond Muratalla (18-0) in the first round when they fought in March. Regardless of what Galindo offers, Ortiz expects to be slick and show us something different on Saturday night. “Expect whatever you think Jamaine Ortiz is but with a little twist in style. You saw me fight one way with (Jamel) Herring and one way with (Vasiliy) Loma, but you will see a different way against Galindo. That’s what makes me unpredictable. I’m going to switch it up.”
If everything goes according to Ortiz, a victory will set him up in an excellent position for big fights in the future. A move to super-lightweight will happen soon, but he has things he wants to accomplish before making that move. Ortiz told FanSidedMMA, “I just want to be a world champion at 135 lbs. I’ve been here so long. I want to be a two-division world champion. I don’t want to just stay in one division and dominate it. I want to be a multi-division champion.”