By James Slater: Victor Ortiz and his team (consisting of promoter Oscar De La Hoya and manager Rolando Arrelano) have just participated in a teleconference call, so reports Dan Rafael, and the Vicious one is still chasing a return with Floyd Mayweather Junior.
Apparently, Ortiz and his team have stated how Mayweather – who legally sucker-punched Ortiz after the defending WBC welterweight champ had hit his challenger with illegal rabbit punches and then, in shocking fashion, a massive, smack-in-the-chops head-butt – has to give the 24-year-old a rematch, less he shows he has no honour.
Fans, the majority of them anyway, feel Ortiz is NOT deserving of a rematch – the general thinking being along the lines of Mayweather owing Ortiz absolutely nothing. Sure, the Sept. 17th fight had a premature ending due to what happened, and Ortiz was at least making things interesting before he went bananas and launched himself head-first at his slippery, hard to hit opponent – but a return looks as unlikely as it is unwanted. Unwanted by everyone expect Team-Ortiz, that is.
Ortiz has another fight on his mind, however – for just in case he doesn’t get a second date with “Money!” Ortiz, as his team said on the teleconference, wants a shot at Pound-for-Pound king Manny Pacquiao if he cannot get Floyd into the ring for a second time. This fight too, looks extremely unlikely to come to fruition. What exactly would Pac-Man gain from a win over Ortiz? With no belt around his waist and coming off a stoppage loss as he is, Ortiz currently brings nothing to the table (also, imagine the uproar from the critics if Manny signed to face Ortiz next! Mayweather has already accused Pacquiao of “fighting his leftovers.”)
The fans, when speaking about what Ortiz should do next, brought up the name of Andre Berto. The two 147-pounders put on a great FOTY candidate earlier this year, with the thrilling, up-from-the-floor points win he scored getting Ortiz the massive chance with Mayweather. Berto has since come back and bagged the IBF welterweight belt (in another exciting fight, Vs. Jan Zaveck) and Andre has made it clear he wants to gain revenge over the only man to have beaten him as a pro. But Team-Ortiz just now said there is no real interest in a Berto II from their side.
Is Ortiz aiming too high with sought after fights with Mayweather and Pacquiao? No doubt.
Ortiz is a young and exciting fighter and he does deserve another big chance down the road; if he can win a comeback fight or two first. But Ortiz, in demanding an immediate Mayweather rematch and to also look Pacquiao’s way as he has done, is asking for way too much too soon.