Two of the most experienced fighters in the heavyweight division will provide the fireworks on New Year’s Day as Luis Ortiz takes on Charles Martin in Florida.
Both men have contested world titles before, with Martin a former IBF belt holder, and this bout will serve as an eliminator for that title.
Veterans Face Off
Martin and Ortiz are both in the veteran stages of their career, with 67 professional fights between the pair and an average age of 38 and a half.
Both men have fought in world title fights, with Ortiz coming up short in two bouts against Deontay Wilder for the WBC title, in 2018 and 2019 respectively.
Martin was IBF world champion for a time in 2016, although his reign was the second-shortest in heavyweight history, lasting just 85 days.
Prince Charles was defeated by Anthony Joshua in April 2016 after winning the belt in a knockout victory over Vyacheslav Glazkov.
Martin After Another Title Shot
Martin has stated that he is looking for another world title shot if he is victorious over Ortiz.
In total, the 35-year-old’s professional record stands at 28 wins, two losses and a draw. His only other defeat, barring his loss to Joshua, was a unanimous decision setback to Adam Kownacki in September 2018.
Since then, Martin has racked up three victories against Gregory Corbin, Daniel Martz and an impressive knockout win over Gerald Washington in February this year.
After the ignominy of his short reign as world champion, Martin is looking to lay down a marker to prove he can return to the top table.
Ortiz No Pushover
Despite his advancing years, Ortiz will be no pushover for Martin. The Cubans’ only losses in his 36 fight career both came at the hands of Deontay Wilder in world title bouts.
Prior to Wilder’s losses to Tyson Fury, Ortiz came closest to beating him. The scorecards were 85-84 to Wilder when Ortiz was knocked out in their first bout and the Cuban was up according to all three judges when he was stopped in their second fight.
However, King Kong has fought just once since November 2019, over a year ago. That bout, a knockout of Alexander Flores, was also over within the first round so Ortiz has spent less than three minutes in a ring in the last two years.
Ring Rust Could be Pivotal
In the two men’s 67 professional bouts, just seven have gone to the judges’ scorecards so an explosive encounter seems likely.
However, the lack of recent experience for Ortiz could be key here, with King Kong’s lack of recent form making it hard to tell how much he has regressed due to his advancing age.
Martin should not take victory over the Cuban for granted but may be able to edge this encounter and move a step closer to fulfilling his wish of securing another world title fight.