By Adam Godfrey – Cuban Heavyweight Luis Ortiz looks likely to lose his WBC title shot against American Deontay Wilder after failing a drug test with a little over a month to go until the event. Ortiz previously failed a drugs test following his initial TKO victory over Lateef Kayode of Nigeria in 2014. The result of the bout was later overturned and declared a no contest after his urine sample tested positive for the banned steroid nandralone.
At the age of 38 it is reasonable to suggest that Ortiz is on the back straight of his career, and should he lose his opportunity to fight for a World title against Wilder it is difficult to see a way back to relevancy for the Cuban, especially with the spectre of two failed drug tests hanging over his head. What’s more, should the longevity that the Cuban has displayed in the latter part of his career be shown to have been dependent on banned substances, it is unlikelythat’ll he’ll be able to reach the level of skill he has shown throughout his time in Boxing when he is clean.
For Deontay Wilder, who is surely ruing a run of bad luck with issues beyond his control in terms of opponents, it’ll now be an arduous task to find a replacement who can pose the stiffness of challenge that Ortiz presented. The American is still without a signature fight and carries a suspect resume bereft of high quality opposition. Recent fights against the likes of Gerald Washington, Chris Arreola, Artur Szpilka, Johann Duhaupas and Eric Molina have done nothing to quell suspicions that Wilder is a protected Champion, despite a seemingly impressive record of 38 wins, with 37 of those wins coming by way of KO. What is not in doubt is that Wilder must now be seen to proactively pursue the toughest challenges that the Heavyweight division has to offer; a showdown with Anthony Joshua surely at the very top of Wilder’s wish-list.
Dillian Whyte has wasted no time in throwing his hat into the ring as a replacement for Ortiz, tweeting:
“No excuses now @Bronzebomber I will take Ortizs place lets get it made @EddieHearn @premierboxing #ALWAYSREADY”.
As the situation stands Whyte is probably the best opponent that Wilder can hope for as an Ortiz replacement. Other than Wladamir Klitchko, Whyte stands as the only Boxer to have given Anthony Joshua a run for his money, having rocked the now-champion in the second round of the contest.
Whyte is a powerful Boxer with decent skills and would be confident of pushing Wilder close, and would arguably stand a realistic, if slim, chance of winning. For Whyte this would set up a rematch with his previous conqueror Anthony Joshua, and such a grudge match would be a very appealing prospect to the British fight market.
Duelling Whyte also makes sense for Wilder; should he beat the Brit in a more convincing fashion than Joshua was able to he would obtain bragging rights over his seemingly inevitable near future opponent. This should be all the carrot needed to dangle in front of the American to entice him to replace Ortiz with Whyte.
With regards Luis Ortiz, the Cuban will need to take a long look at himself if he is to seek and find any sort of redemption, but considering his advancing age and poor doping reputation it is doubtful that his career will progress much further than it already has; for all intents and purposes, the end of the road is either in sight or directly in front of ‘The Real King Kong’, and it is difficult to feel much sympathy should he fade into obscurity.