Italy has a new European boxing champion, and his name is Luca D’Ortenzi! Our fighter defeated Poland’s Robert Parzeczewski by eleventh-round TKO, capturing the prestigious EBU light heavyweight title. The bout served as the main event of the card organized in Guidonia Montecelio by Davide Buccioni’s BBT promotion.
Inside the ring stood a former cruiserweight with even a heavyweight appearance on his résumé (D’Ortenzi) and a former super middleweight (Parzeczewski), and the physical advantage of the Italian boxer was evident from the opening introductions.
However, it was the Polish fighter who got off to the better start, far more active and aggressive in the first round, partly because of D’Ortenzi’s extremely cautious approach. Luca stayed tightly behind his high guard, carefully studying his opponent before revealing his own weapons.
From the second round onward, the fight became more balanced and developed into a fairly clear pattern: Parzeczewski relied on a higher work rate, throwing many punches with limited impact, while D’Ortenzi focused on fewer but more damaging attacks, finding particular success with his right hook.
Luca seemed much more comfortable when applying pressure, taking the initiative and forcing his opponent backward, than when trying to counterpunch. His defense, based mainly on a static tight guard, made quick counters difficult and allowed the Polish fighter to work effectively with both hands.
The impression of this writer was that Parzeczewski held a slight lead at the halfway point, also thanks to a very passive sixth round from D’Ortenzi, whose strategy resembled that of old-school German-trained boxers: shelled up behind a tight defense for long stretches before exploding with isolated but violent combinations.
Fortunately for the Italian crowd, D’Ortenzi approached the second half of the fight with a completely different attitude, finally letting his hands go and attacking decisively. His decision to switch stance and fight southpaw also proved highly effective: Parzeczewski looked confused and became increasingly hesitant.
D’Ortenzi maintained that setup in the eighth round and continued to gain the upper hand, landing several vicious uppercuts to the body that clearly bothered the Polish fighter. The momentum of the fight had now completely shifted, with the Italian boxer full of confidence and gradually pulling ahead.
At the beginning of the eleventh round, the time had come for the decisive assault. Luca came out of his corner with furious determination, rocked his opponent with a right hand to the head, and shortly afterward scored a knockdown with the same punch. Parzeczewski got back to his feet and tried to continue fighting, but he was immediately trapped on the ropes and overwhelmed by punches, prompting the referee to stop the contest.
It was therefore a fully deserved victory for D’Ortenzi, who at the age of 38 fulfilled a lifelong dream by reaching the top of Europe after ten long years in the professional ranks marked by sacrifices, joys, and disappointments. The Roman boxer entered this huge opportunity in excellent physical condition and with a clear strategic plan, which he followed diligently before reaping the rewards in the second half of the bout. A huge round of applause to him and his entire team for this magnificent achievement!