Carlos Ortiz
| Carlos Ortiz | |
|---|---|
 Ortiz c. 1966 | |
| Statistics | |
| Weight(s) | Lightweight Light welterweight |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (170 cm) |
| Reach | 70 in (178 cm) |
| Nationality | Puerto Rican |
| Born | 9 September 1936 Ponce, Puerto Rico |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 70 |
| Wins | 61 |
| Wins by KO | 30 |
| Losses | 7 |
| Draws | 1 |
| No contests | 1 |
| External audio | |
|---|---|
 You may hear Carlos Ortiz vs Kenny Lane II on YouTube |
Carlos Ortiz (born 9 September 1936) is a Puerto Rican former professional boxer. He won three world titles, two at lightweight and once at light welterweight. Along with Félix Trinidad, Miguel Cotto, Wilfredo Gómez, Héctor Camacho, and Wilfred Benítez, Ortiz is considered among the best Puerto Rican boxers of all time by sports journalists and analysts.[1] As of January 2018, Ortiz holds the record for the most wins in unified lightweight title bouts in boxing history at 10.
In 1991, Ortiz was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. In 2002, Ortiz was voted by The Ring magazine as the 60th greatest fighter of the last 80 years.[2] He currently holds 21st place in BoxRec ranking of the greatest pound for pound boxers of all time.[3]
Professional career[]
Ortiz, born in Ponce, started his professional career in 1955 with a first round knockout of Harry Bell in New York. He moved from Puerto Rico to New York before he began boxing as a professional, he would campaign there during the first stages of his career. After 9 bouts there, he fought outside New York for the first time, moving to Massachusetts to knock Al Duarte out in 4 rounds. His next 3 bouts were also outside New York, but he stayed within the confines of New England, as they happened, once again in Massachusetts, and in New Jersey.
He returned to New York again and won 4 more bouts in a row, then made his California debut, beating Mickey Northrup by a decision in 10 rounds. 2 more fights in California and one in New York went by, after which he returned to California to meet Lou Filippo, who was subsequently inducted into the International Boxing Hall Of Fame as a referee. Filippo was also one of the guys who participated in five Rocky films. The first time, it was declared a no-contest after 9 rounds, but in the second, Carlos prevailed, by a knockout in 9. 5 more wins followed, and then he met Johnny Busso, who handled Carlos his first loss, on a 10-round decision. That fight was held in New York, and in an immediate rematch between Ortiz and Busso, Carlos won, also by a 10-round decision, and also in New York.
Next Carlos flew to England to meet Dave Charnley, who was considered one of the top challengers of that time. Ortiz won the fight at Harringay Arena on a 10-round decision, after which promoters thought he was ready for a world title try.
Junior welterweight world champion[]
Carlos met Kenny Lane for the vacant world Jr. Welterweight title, in New York on the night of 12 June 1959. Lane had handled Carlos his second loss months before, winning a 10-round decision over Ortiz in Florida. This time, Carlos became the World's Jr Welterweight champion, with a TKO of Lane at the end of 2 round.[4] Ortiz had become the first Puerto Rican world boxing champion since Sixto Escobar more than 30 years before, and only the second Puerto Rican world boxing champion ever. Unfortunately for him, not much importance was being given to that division at the time, since that division's title had been vacant for 13 years. But Carlos defended his title twice, knocking out the respected, until then undefeated Mexican puncher Battling Torres in Torres' home ground of Los Angeles, and beating Duilio Loi in 15 rounds by decision at San Francisco.
His next fight was a rematch with Loi, and it took Ortiz to Milan, Italy to defend his crown. This time, it was Loi's turn to become a world champion, winning by a 15-round decision.
After another win, Ortiz traveled to Milan once again, and met Loi in a rubber match. This time, he lost again, by 15-round decision.
Lightweight world champion[]
Instead of going up in weight, like most boxers throughout history have done after losing the title in their original division, Ortiz went down in weight, and challenged world champion Joe Brown (also a member of the International Boxing Hall Of Fame). Ortiz won a 15-round decision over Brown on 21 April 1962 in Las Vegas, to win his second world title, this time in his second championship division. Ortiz defended with a 5-round knockout of Teruo Kosaka in Tokyo before making his Puerto Rican debut, with a 13-round knockout win over Doug Valiant to retain his title on 7 April 1963 in San Juan.
A knockout win in 14 rounds over another Hall of Famer, Gabriel Elorde, Flash in the Philippines followed, and then a remach with Lane, this time Ortiz retaining his world Lightweight title with a 15-round decision in San Juan. But in 1965 he went to Panama and fought yet another member of the International Boxing Hall Of Fame, Ismael Laguna who defeated him in 15 rounds to claim Ortiz's world Lightweight title. A rematch in San Juan followed, and Ortiz regained the world Lightweight title beating Laguna by a 15-round decision also.
1966 saw Ortiz draw with world Jr Welterweight champion Nicolino Locche in a ten-round non-title affair in Argentina, and retain his title vs Johnny Bizarro (KO in 12 in Pittsburgh), Cuban Sugar Ramos (another International Boxing Hall Of Fame Member, KO in 5 rounds in Mexico City) and Filipino Flash Elorde, also by KO in 14 at a New York rematch. The Ramos fight proved controversial, because the WBC's president proclaimed at first that the punch with which Ortiz had beaten Ramos with had been illegal, but he later reconsidered and gave Ortiz the title, and the knockout victory, back, with the condition that a rematch be fought in the future.
And so 1967 came, and Ortiz and Ramos met once again, this time in San Juan. Ortiz retained the title by a knockout in 4 rounds, and this time the bout went without any controversies. Then, he and Laguna fought a third time, and Ortiz retained his title by a 15-round decision in New York.
Later career[]
29 June 1968 proved to be Ortiz's last day as a world champion, as he lost his world lightweight title to Dominican Carlos Cruz on a 15-round decision in the Dominican Republic. Ortiz kept on fighting, but he never got another chance at a world title. He retired after losing at Madison Square Garden by a knockout in 6 rounds to Ken Buchanan. It was the only time he was stopped in his career. His final record was of 61 wins, 7 losses and 1 draw, with one bout declared a no-contest and 30 knockout wins.
Ortiz is also a member of the International Boxing Hall Of Fame and he always enjoys taking photos with his fans and signing autographs for them.
Professional boxing record[]
| 70 fights | 61 wins | 7 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 30 | 1 |
| By decision | 31 | 6 |
| Draws | 1 | |
| No contests | 1 | |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 70 | Loss | 61–7–1 (1) | Ken Buchanan | RTD | 6 (10) | Sep 20, 1972 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 69 | Win | 61–6–1 (1) | Johnny Copeland | KO | 3 (10) | Aug 01, 1972 | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S. | |
| 68 | Win | 60–6–1 (1) | Gerardo Ferrat | TKO | 3 (10) | Jun 03, 1972 | International Amphitheatre, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | |
| 67 | Win | 59–6–1 (1) | Greg Potter | UD | 10 | May 01, 1972 | Inglewood Forum, Inglewood, California, U.S. | |
| 66 | Win | 58–6–1 (1) | Junior Varney | TKO | 7 (10) | Mar 20, 1972 | Ponce, Puerto Rico | |
| 65 | Win | 57–6–1 (1) | Leo DiFiore | KO | 2 (10) | Feb 19, 1972 | Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico | |
| 64 | Win | 56–6–1 (1) | Ivelaw Eastman | TKO | 2 (10) | Jan 31, 1972 | Waltham, Massachusetts, U.S. | |
| 63 | Win | 55–6–1 (1) | Terry Rondeau | TKO | 4 (10) | Jan 20, 1972 | Exposition Building, Portland, Maine, U.S. | |
| 62 | Win | 54–6–1 (1) | Bill Whittenburg | KO | 7 (10) | Jan 08, 1972 | Coconut Grove Convention Center, Coconut Grove, Florida, U.S. | |
| 61 | Win | 53–6–1 (1) | Jimmy Ligons | TKO | 3 (10) | Dec 01, 1971 | Silver Slipper, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | |
| 60 | Win | 52–6–1 (1) | Edmundo Leite | MD | 10 | Nov 21, 1969 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 59 | Loss | 51–6–1 (1) | Carlos Teo Cruz | SD | 15 | Jun 29, 1968 | Estadio Quisqueya, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | Lost WBA, WBC and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 58 | Win | 51–5–1 (1) | Ismael Laguna | UD | 15 | Aug 16, 1967 | Shea Stadium, New York City, New York, U.S. | Retained WBA, WBC and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 57 | Win | 50–5–1 (1) | Sugar Ramos | TKO | 4 (15) | Jul 01, 1967 | Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico | Retained WBA and The Ring lightweight titles Won vacant WBC lightweight title |
| 56 | Win | 49–5–1 (1) | Flash Elorde | TKO | 14 (15) | Nov 28, 1966 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | Retained WBA, WBC, and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 55 | Win | 48–5–1 (1) | Sugar Ramos | TKO | 5 (15) | Oct 22, 1966 | El Toreo, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico | Retained WBA, WBC, and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 54 | Win | 47–5–1 (1) | Johnny Bizzarro | TKO | 12 (15) | Jun 20, 1966 | Pittsburgh Civic Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. | Retained WBA, WBC, and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 53 | Draw | 46–5–1 (1) | Nicolino Locche | MD | 10 | Apr 07, 1966 | Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| 52 | Win | 46–5 (1) | Ismael Laguna | UD | 15 | Nov 13, 1965 | Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico | Won WBA, WBC, and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 51 | Loss | 45–5 (1) | Ismael Laguna | MD | 15 | Apr 10, 1965 | Estadio Nacional de Panamá, Panama City, Panama | Lost WBA, WBC, and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 50 | Win | 45–4 (1) | Dick Divola | TKO | 1 (10) | Dec 14, 1964 | Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. | |
| 49 | Win | 44–4 (1) | Kenny Lane | UD | 15 | Apr 11, 1964 | Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico | Retained WBA, WBC, and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 48 | Win | 43–4 (1) | Flash Elorde | TKO | 14 (15) | Feb 15, 1964 | Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines | Retained WBA, WBC, and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 47 | Win | 42–4 (1) | Maurice Cullen | PTS | 10 | Oct 22, 1963 | Empire Pool, Wembley, London, England, U.K. | |
| 46 | Win | 41–4 (1) | Pete Acera | TKO | 7 (10) | Sep 18, 1963 | Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. | |
| 45 | Win | 40–4 (1) | Doug Vaillant | TKO | 13 (15) | Apr 07, 1963 | Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico | Retained WBA, WBC, and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 44 | Win | 39–4 (1) | Teruo Kosaka | KO | 5 (15) | Dec 03, 1962 | Kokugikan, Tokyo, Japan | Retained NYSAC, WBA, and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 43 | Win | 38–4 (1) | Kazuo Takayama | UD | 10 | Nov 07, 1962 | Korakuen Hall, Tokyo, Japan | |
| 42 | Win | 37–4 (1) | Arthur Persley | UD | 10 | Aug 01, 1962 | Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines | |
| 41 | Win | 36–4 (1) | Joe Brown | UD | 15 | Apr 21, 1962 | Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | Won NYSAC, NBA, and The Ring lightweight titles |
| 40 | Win | 35–4 (1) | Paolo Rosi | UD | 10 | Nov 18, 1961 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 39 | Win | 34–4 (1) | Doug Vaillant | UD | 10 | Sep 02, 1961 | Miami Beach Convention Center, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. | |
| 38 | Loss | 33–4 (1) | Duilio Loi | UD | 15 | May 10, 1961 | San Siro, Milan, Lombarida, Italy | For NYSAC and NBA light welterweight titles |
| 37 | Win | 33–3 (1) | Cisco Andrade | UD | 10 | Feb 02, 1961 | Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
| 36 | Loss | 32–3 (1) | Duilio Loi | MD | 15 | Sep 01, 1960 | San Siro, Milan, Lombardio, Italy | Lost NYSAC and NBA light welterweight titles |
| 35 | Win | 32–2 (1) | Duilio Loi | SD | 15 | Jun 15, 1960 | Cow Palace, San Francisco, California | Retained NYSAC and NBA light welterweight titles |
| 34 | Win | 31–2 (1) | Battling Torres | KO | 10 (15) | Feb 04, 1960 | Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Retained NYSAC and NBA light welterweight titles |
| 33 | Win | 30–2 (1) | Kenny Lane | TKO | 2 (15) | Jun 12, 1959 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | Won vacant NYSAC and NBA light welterweight titles |
| 32 | Win | 29–2 (1) | Len Matthews | TKO | 6 (10) | Apr 13, 1959 | Philadelphia Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
| 31 | Loss | 28–2 (1) | Kenny Lane | MD | 10 | Dec 31, 1958 | Miami Beach Convention Center, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. | |
| 30 | Win | 28–1 (1) | Dave Charnley | PTS | 10 | Oct 28, 1958 | Harringay Arena, Harringay, London, England, U.K. | |
| 29 | Win | 27–1 (1) | Johnny Busso | UD | 10 | Sep 19, 1958 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 28 | Loss | 26–1 (1) | Johnny Busso | SD | 10 | Jun 27, 1958 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 27 | Win | 26–0 (1) | Joey Lopes | UD | 10 | May 09, 1958 | Legion Stadium, Hollywood, California, U.S. | |
| 26 | Win | 25–0 (1) | Tommy Tibbs | UD | 10 | Feb 28, 1958 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 25 | Win | 24–0 (1) | Harry Bell | UD | 10 | Sep 23, 1957 | St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 24 | Win | 23–0 (1) | Felix Chiocca | UD | 10 | May 29, 1957 | Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | |
| 23 | Win | 22–0 (1) | Ike Vaughn | UD | 10 | May 07, 1957 | Miami Beach Convention Center, Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. | |
| 22 | Win | 21–0 (1) | Lou Filippo | TKO | 7 (10) | Apr 09, 1957 | Legion Stadium, Hollywood, California, U.S. | |
| 21 | NC | 20–0 (1) | Lou Filippo | ND | 9 (10) | Mar 02, 1957 | Legion Stadium, Hollywood, California, U.S. | |
| 20 | Win | 20–0 | Bobby Rogers | UD | 10 | Jan 23, 1957 | Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | |
| 19 | Win | 19–0 | Gale Kerwin | UD | 10 | Dec 31, 1956 | St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 18 | Win | 18–0 | Philip Kim | TKO | 9 (10) | Dec 15, 1956 | Legion Stadium, Hollywood, California, U.S. | |
| 17 | Win | 17–0 | Mickey Northrup | UD | 10 | Oct 27, 1956 | Legion Stadium, Hollywood, California, U.S. | |
| 16 | Win | 16–0 | Tommy Salem | SD | 10 | Jul 30, 1956 | St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 15 | Win | 15–0 | Tommy Salem | PTS | 6 | May 25, 1956 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 14 | Win | 14–0 | Ray Portilla | PTS | 8 | Feb 17, 1956 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | Ray Portilla | UD | 8 | Jan 09, 1956 | St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Charley Titone | TKO | 2 (8) | Dec 10, 1955 | Armory, Paterson, New Jersey, U.S. | |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Lem Miller | PTS | 8 | Nov 12, 1955 | Arena, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. | |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Al Duarte | TKO | 4 (6) | Oct 29, 1955 | Arena, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. | |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Leroy Graham | KO | 2 (6) | Oct 03, 1955 | St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Hector Rodriguez | KO | 2 (6) | Sep 19, 1955 | St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Armand Bush | PTS | 6 | Aug 22, 1955 | St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Tony DeCola | PTS | 6 | Aug 10, 1955 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Jimmy DeMura | PTS | 6 | Jun 24, 1955 | War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, New York, U.S. | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Juan Pacheco | KO | 2 (4) | May 30, 1955 | St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Danny Roberts | KO | 3 (4) | May 13, 1955 | Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Morris Hodnett | TKO | 1 (4) | Feb 28, 1955 | St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Harry Bell | KO | 1 (4) | Feb 14, 1955 | St. Nicholas Arena, New York City, New York, U.S. |
Legacy[]
He is recognized at Ponce's Parque de los Ponceños Ilustres in the area of sports.[5]
See also[]
- Lineal championship
- List of lightweight boxing champions
- List of light welterweight boxing champions
- List of WBA world champions
- List of WBC world champions
- List of undisputed boxing champions
- List of Puerto Rican boxing world champions
- List of Puerto Ricans
- Sports in Puerto Rico
References[]
- ^ Sánchez, José A. (25 November 2012). "Entre leyendas Macho Camacho". El Nuevo Día.
- ^ Andrew Eisele. "Ring Magazine's 80 Best Fighters of the Last 80 Years". About.com Sports.
- ^ Boxrec all time p4p rankings
- ^ "Carlos Ortiz - Lineal Junior Welterweight Champion". The Cyber Boxing Zone Encyclopedia.
- ^ "Sports". TravelPonce.com. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
External links[]
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Carlos Ortíz. |
- Boxing record for Carlos Ortiz from BoxRec
- Carlos Ortiz - CBZ Profile
- https://boxrec.com/media/index.php/National_Boxing_Association%27s_Quarterly_Ratings:_1962
- https://www.wbaboxing.com/wba-history/world-boxing-association-history
- https://titlehistories.com/boxing/na/usa/ny/nysac-l.html
 Puerto Ricans in the International Boxing Hall of Fame |
| Number | Name | Year inducted | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carlos Ortíz | 1991 | World Jr. Welterweight Champion 1959 June 12- 1960, September 1, WBA Lightweight Champion 1962 Apr 21 – 1965 Apr 10, WBC Lightweight Champion 1963 Apr 7 – 1965 Apr 10, WBC Lightweight Champion 1965 Nov 13 – 1968 Jun 29. |
| 2 | Wilfred Benítez | 1994 | The youngest world champion in boxing history. WBA Light Welterweight Champion 1976 Mar 6 – 1977, WBC Welterweight Champion 1979 Jan 14 – 1979 Nov 30, WBC Light Middleweight Champion. |
| 3 | Wilfredo Gómez | 1995 | WBC Super Bantamweight Champion 1977 May 21 – 1983, WBC Featherweight Champion 1984 Mar 31 – 1984 Dec 8, WBA Super Featherweight Champion 1985 May 19 – 1986 May 24. |
| 4 | José "Chegui" Torres | 1997 | Won a silver medal in the junior middleweight at the 1956 Olympic Games. Undisputed Light Heavyweight Champion 1965 Mar 30 – 1966 Dec 16 |
| 5 | Sixto Escobar | 2002 | Puerto Rico's first boxing champion. World Bantamweight Champion 15 Nov 1935– 23 Sep 1937, World Bantamweight Champion 20 Feb 1938– Oct 1939 |
| 6 | Edwin Rosario | 2006 | Ranks #36 on the list of "100 Greatest Punchers of All Time." according to Ring Magazine. WBC Lightweight Champion 1983 May 1 – 1984 Nov 3, WBA Lightweight Champion 1986 Sep 26 – 1987 Nov 21, WBA Lightweight Champion 199 Jul 9 – 1990 Apr 4, WBA Light Welterweight Champion 1991 Jun 14 – 1992 Apr 10. |
| 7 | Pedro Montañez | 2007 | 92 wins out of 103 fights. Never held a title. |
| 8 | Joe Cortez | 2011 | The first Puerto Rican boxing referee to be inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame |
| 9 | Herbert "Cocoa Kid" Hardwick | 2012 | Member of boxing's "Black Murderers' Row". World Colored Welterweight Championship - June 11, 1937 to August 22, 1938; World Colored Middleweight Championship - January 11, 1940 until the title went extinct in the 1940s; World Colored Middleweight Championship - January 15, 1943 until the title went extinct in the 1940s |
| 10 | Félix "Tito" Trinidad | 2014 | Captured the IBF welterweight crown in his 20th pro bout. Won the WBA light middleweight title from David Reid in March 2000 and later that year unified titles with a 12th-round knockout against IBF champ Fernando Vargas. In 2001 became a three-division champion. |
| 11 | Héctor "Macho" Camacho | 2016 | First boxer to be recognized as a septuple champion in history. WBC Super Featherweight Championship - August 7, 1983 – 1984, WBC Lightweight Championship - August 10, 1985 – 1987, WBO Light Welterweight Champion - March 6, 1989 – February 23, 1991, WBO Light Welterweight Champion - May 18, 1991–1992. |
| 12 | Mario Rivera Martino | 2019 | First Puerto Rican boxing sports writer to be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. He served Puerto Rican boxing for more than 50 years as a writer and eventual commissioner. |
| 13 | Miguel Cotto | 2022 | He is a multiple-time world champion, and the first Puerto Rican boxer to win world titles in four weight classes, from light welterweight to middleweight. In 2007 and 2009, |
= Indicates the person is no longer alive
- 1936 births
- Living people
- Sportspeople from Ponce, Puerto Rico
- International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees
- Light-welterweight boxers
- Lightweight boxers
- Pan American Games competitors for Puerto Rico
- World boxing champions
- Puerto Rican male boxers