WBC heavyweight titlist Deontay Wilder says he on the path towards title unification, and that contender Luis Ortiz is just one obstacle standing in the way of that happening. Amidst all of the criticism of over lack of tough opposition, Wilder finally had enough and asked his team to put him in tough — and they believe Luis ‘King Kong’ Ortiz fits the bill.
"I've been waiting for this moment for a long time, and I'm excited that the time has come to meet Luis Ortiz,'' Wilder said. "Ortiz is considered the boogeyman of the sport, and I am the hardest hitter in boxing. When you put us together in a ring, you will get one of the best heavyweight fights in a long time. I will unify the division. This I promise. This is the first step towards unifying. Any heavyweight that gets in my way is getting knocked out.''
Wilder’s last five opponents since winning the WBC heavyweight title have been Eric Molina, Johan Duhaupas, Artur Szpilka, Chris Arreola, and Gerald Washington — so not exactly murderer’s row. But Ortiz (27-0, 23 KOs), although 38-years-old at this point, is still the biggest threat to Wilder’s title reign thus far, so fans can be happy about competitive match-up on paper.
"I am the best. I am the toughest heavyweight in the division. I am the man in the division. I don't care what anybody else has going on. You've got to come through me," Wilder said. "When I knock him out, I want my due respect. I'm the only American heavyweight champion of the world, and I am the man. Nobody is stronger physically, mentally and spiritually. They are all scared of me.”
Wilder continued by saying that once he takes care of Ortiz ‘you already know who is next.’ That ‘who’ would be fellow world titleholder Anthony Joshua (19-0, 19 KOs) who is coming off a thrilling win over Wladimir Klitschko this past April. A potential showdown between Wilder and Joshua is the obvious and most anticipated fight to make in the division — and one that’s also being built up so that it can be milked for all its worth.