Barely enough time to settle into the fight before the crowd at the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, was already lining up to leave. Vergil Ortiz Jr wasted no time extending the show beyond what was necessary, knocking out fellow American Erickson “The Hammer” Lubin in just two rounds to successfully defend his WBC Interim Super Welterweight Title. At the end of the brief main event, promoted by Golden Boy Promotions, Ortiz called unbeaten contender Jaron Ennis into the ring for a face-to-face that hints at a thrilling showdown on the horizon.
There wasn’t much action in the opening round between Ortiz and Lubin. As predicted in our pre-fight analysis, “The Hammer” chose to play the cautious boxer, circling carefully around his dangerous opponent and relying on straight punches to control the distance.
Ortiz remained patient, advancing in small steps behind his trademark high guard, landing a few well-timed, clean punches—enough to clearly take the round.
Though he didn’t seem in a rush to increase the pace, the Texan couldn’t pass up the opportunity to pounce when, in the second round, Lubin was visibly rocked by a left hook to the temple and trapped against the ropes.
Ortiz smelled blood and unleashed a flurry of punches on a clearly hurt opponent who was doing little more than covering up desperately, absorbing shots without any attempt to fire back.
A series of consecutive right hooks to the head completely stunned Lubin, forcing the referee to step in just in time as he stood defenseless, seconds away from taking serious damage.
While I expected a slightly longer fight, I’m not surprised by how easily Ortiz passed this test. Lubin simply didn’t have the physical or technical tools to stop his relentless pressure, and it was only a matter of time before he crumbled under the power of the unbeaten Texan.
Watching from ringside was another major star in the super welterweight division, the highly skilled Jaron “Boots” Ennis. After applauding Ortiz’s knockout, Ennis pointed to his wrist for the cameras—as if to say, “Ortiz’s time is running out.”
During his post-fight interview, Ortiz called Ennis into the ring for a handshake and a tense face-off—an exchange that raises hopes for a future battle between the two. Even though neither man currently holds a world title, such a clash would still be an elite-level contest of the highest quality. Given their styles, fans could expect pure fireworks.