Vergil Ortiz Jr vs Samuel Vargas 2020-07-24

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Event
Vergil Ortiz Jr vs Samuel Vargas

Date
Fri 24th July 2020 (UTC)
Fri 24th July 2020 (Local)

Timestamp

Time

00:00:00 UTC

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League
Boxing

Season
2020

Round
0

Status

Location
Fantasy Springs Resort Casino

Video Highlights

Play on YouTube

Description

Vergil Ortiz Jr. kicks off his 2020 campaign in style with a seventh-round stoppage of Samuel Vargas.

It is a new era in boxing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has forced boxing events to be held without fans in attendance. But none of that mattered to Vergil Ortiz Jr. heading into his main event tilt against Samuel Vargas on Friday at Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, Calif.

Ortiz (16-0, 16 KOs) showed why he's not only one of boxing's rising stars but also a force to reckoned with in the welterweight division, running through Vargas to win by TKO with two seconds remaining in the seventh round.

Ortiz and Vargas were set to lock horns at the end of March, but the coronavirus sent the sports world into lockdown and postponed the event two weeks beforehand.

Fast forward four months later and Ortiz didn't miss a beat. He came out firing with a powerful jab and threw everything with conviction to let Vargas know that he wasn't coming to play around. The evidence was worn on Vargas' face early, with a bloody nose just three minutes into the action. That same trend continued as Ortiz kept pumping a hard jab and turning his hips ever so slightly to blast Vargas.

Vargas was doing the best he could but was taking a savage beating. It got to the point where referee Jack Reiss had the ringside doctor check on Vargas between rounds four and five because he was absorbing a tremendous amount of punishment.

Ortiz appeared to have taken the fifth round off, which also led to Vargas' best moments of the fight. He got the better of a couple of exchanges and started to gain some confidence heading into the second half of the contest. The confidence waned as Ortiz came back firing on all cylinders by pumping the hard jab and brutal right hands to the head and body in the following round.

For the first time in his career, Ortiz saw the seventh round. But the native of Texas made sure he didn't see the eighth. He connected on a vicious right hand followed with a left hook to put Vargas on shaky legs. Seeing he had Vargas right where he wanted him, the 22-year-old started unloading until Vargas football tackled him to the ground.

That wouldn't deter Ortiz whatsoever. He closed the show by continuing to blast Vargas until Reiss stepped to put an end to the fight.

Even though he won in spectacular fashion, Ortiz didn't give himself a top grade. Regardless, Ortiz feels he's now ready for the upper echelon in a talent-rich welterweight division.

"I was, like, a solid B+," Ortiz said in his post-fight interview. "That was my best opponent to date. I would like to fight someone like Danny Garcia or Keith Thurman.”

Reports

Result List

Vergil Ortiz Jr.

WIN

Result Description
11:35 p.m.: Ortiz def. Vargas by knockout at 2:58 of the seventh round. Ortiz was determined to put Vargas away and did just that by throwing one big shot after another. A right hand wobbled Vargas. Sensing he was in trouble, he tackled Ortiz to the ground. It didn't matter for Ortiz as he continued to pummel Vargas by using his speed and power to overwhelm Vargas with left and right hands. With time winding down and the beating continuing, referee Jack Reiss had seen enough.

Round 6: Ortiz went back to the power game and continued to make life difficult for Vargas. Vargas said coming into the fight, you'd start to see him wear Ortiz down since he'd never been past the sixth. Will it happen? (10-9 Ortiz, 60-54 Ortiz)

Round 5: Good job by Ortiz. He adapted from power shots to going back to the stinging jab he implemented in the first round. Vargas needs to start letting it go a little more if he has any chance to win. (10-9 Ortiz, 50-45 Ortiz)

Round 4: An explosive round from Ortiz. He stunned Vargas with a left hook and tried to close it out. But Vargas came back with a short right uppercut and started to hold onto Ortiz. Like the shoulder roll from Vargas to avoid the full power of the overhand right. Let's see if Ortiz switches it up and figure out a way to put Vargas away. (10-9 Ortiz, 40-36 Ortiz)

Round 3: In what had been a close round, Ortiz turned it on in the final 70 seconds, unloading hard overhand rights followed by uppercuts. What's so impressive is how Ortiz stays balanced while throwing each power shot. A sight to see. (10-9 Ortiz, 30-27 Ortiz)

Round 2: A better round for Vargas. He landed a couple of body shots and backed Ortiz into the ropes. But the jab of Ortiz is proving to be too much already and it's only two rounds in. Vargas needs to continue going to the body and apply pressure if he's going to have any chance of success. (10-9 Ortiz, 20-18 Ortiz)

Round 1: Couldn't have asked for a better start if you're Ortiz. His jab is crisp and power shots are on point. Everything he's throwing at Vargas hurts. Vargas' face is already red and had a little bit of blood coming out of his nose when the horn sounded. (10-9 Ortiz)

10:59 p.m.: It's now time for the main event as Vergil Ortiz Jr. battles Samuel Vargas in welterweight action. Ortiz (15-0, 15 KOs) had a banner 2019, competing four times and winning them all by knockout. When he's gotten into the big fights, Vargas (31-5-2, 14 KOs) has come up short against unified welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr., former two-division titleholder Danny Garcia and former junior welterweight titlist Amir Khan.

Can Vargas finally come through? Or does Ortiz show the world that he's one of the top young boxers in the sport?

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