Vergil Ortiz Jr. is fighting Tim Tszyu on August 3 – or so it was announced this week – but Ortiz’s team has urged people not jump to conclusions as they are not looking past Saturday night.
Ortiz fights on Saturday, April 27 at the SaveMart Center in Fresno, Calif., against Thomas Dulorme. The bout will be the co-feature of the DAZN card co-headlined by former unified junior welterweight world champion Jose Ramirez versus Rances Barthelemy.
The talk of the town is clear. It was announced earlier this week that Ortiz (20-0, 20 KOs) would fight Tim Tszyu on August 3 as part of a mega-card headlined by Terence Crawford battling Israil Madrimov for the WBA junior middleweight world title. Ortiz must first defeat Dulorme (26-6-1, 17 KOs) first for the Tszyu bout to become a reality.
The super-card set for August 3 in Los Angeles will mark the first Saudi-backed Riyadh Season event in the United States and Ortiz’s fight is one of the most anticipated on the card.
“We have heard the same thing, like everybody else,” Ortiz’s trainer Robert Garcia told BoxingScene. “We are focused on Thomas Dulorme. We are not looking past Thomas Dulorme.”
Garcia is quick to dispel any talk of anything other than Dulorme. “After this fight, we can get something going, but right now it is only Dulorme,” stated Garcia.
The experienced Dulorme was notably knocked out in a junior welterweight world title fight against Terence Crawford in 2015. He has lost three of his last four fights, with two of the defeats being a first-round knockout loss to Jaron “Boots” Ennis and a 12-round decision to Eimantas Stanionis.
Dulorme has been pro for 16 years, which Garcia does not discount. This weekend is also Dulorme’s first time-fighting at junior middleweight.
“Dulorme is an experienced fighter, he is awkward – it is going to be a good challenge,” said Garcia. “I know Vergil, and he is definitely one of the strongest fighters I have ever worked with. So that should be the big difference, but Dulorme is a very experienced fighter."