It was a risky fight on paper against a Mexican banger. But in less than six minutes, “King” Callum Walsh made a piñata out of Carlos Ortiz en route to a second round KO at the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez, California, last weekend.
With the win, that upped his record to 11-0 [9 KOs], the Cork sensation retained his WBC Continental Americas super welterweight title.
Ortiz entered the ring with a 14-5 ledger and the distinction of all his victories coming by knockout. Against Walsh, however, it was his turn to taste the power of a superior fighter in a battle of super welterweight southpaws.
A highly technical and fluid fighter trained by hall of famer Freddie Roach, Walsh gave Ortiz an early taste of his power. He was on the attack from the first bell, shooting off combinations and keeping his man on the backfoot until he dropped him with a right hook at the end of the opening round.
The 23-year-old kept up the pressure in the second round, decking Ortiz again with another right hook. Ortiz beat the count, but it was a matter of time.
The end came when Walsh threw a straight right followed by short, sharp left flush on the chin. Ortiz dropped to the canvas and referee Jack Reiss didn’t bother counting. Time was 1:50 of the second.
Walsh's victory on the west coast follows back-to-back wins at Madison Square Garden. He earned a dominant ten-round unanimous decision points over Kazak veteran Dauren Yeleussinov on March 15 in The Theater at Madison Square Garden. That fight headlined a huge St. Patrick’s Day weekend event in New York City.
Four months earlier at the famous arena, the hard-hitting Walsh, a southpaw, had bested the game Ismael Villarreal – out of the Bronx -- also via a 10 round unanimous decision.
Ranked #10 in the world by the WBC and #11 by the IBF, the Los Angeles-based Walsh, whose professional fights have all been in the United States, is now shooting for an Irish homecoming.
“I want my next fight to be in Ireland,” he told media after the fight.
His backer Dana White, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) CEO, echoed that. “Callum Walsh is coming home in his next fight,” he was reported as saying by irishboxing.com.
KATIE REMATCH
The Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano rematch has been rescheduled to Nov. 15 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The bout will be on the undercard of the Mike Tyson-Jake Paul heavyweight contest that was postponed from July 20 when Tyson fell sick.
"Our team has worked diligently with all parties involved to reschedule this monumental fight to a date that ensures both Jake Paul and Mike Tyson are fully prepared, with equal training time, as well as allowing us to keep the event at AT&T stadium in the midst of the Cowboys season,” said Nakisa Bidarian, Co-Founder of Most Valuable Promotions.
“We appreciate the outstanding dedication, collaboration, and flexibility of our partners at Netflix and AT&T Stadium. Paul vs. Tyson is the most cross generational sporting event in history, and we are committed to providing fans worldwide with this unforgettable night of boxing, live globally on Netflix. We l”
"Although we had to postpone the fight, I will resume training shortly. I am thankful to the medical staff that treated me and to MVP, Netflix, and AT&T Stadium for working diligently to find the best reschedule date for all parties,” said Tyson.
