Victor Ortiz’ return was supposed to be a highlight. After all, the 37-year-old was setting foot in the ring after more than two years. But what fans were met with was Ortiz struggling to return to his past self—punches failing to make impact, swings and misses, and his opponent Rodrigo Damian Coria outworking him. While many anticipated a touch of nostalgia and an exciting display, the two just tagged and had sporadic outbursts of action, making the co-event a snooze-fest.

Ortiz took the first round slow as he tried to find the pace and rhythm in the fight. Coria appeared to be the busier one, but there was no power behind any fighter’s punches. While Ortiz found his range in the second round with body shots and combinations, Coria doubled down with his jabs. By Round 3, the Argentine stepped up his game as a sluggish Ortiz seemed too slow to make up. Except for a few moments of exchange, nothing exhilarating happened in the middle rounds, where Coria’s speed puzzled Ortiz.

Notably, just a while back, Ortiz had claimed what makes him superior to his fighters. “I hit like a heavyweight. I just know that I’m a lot for some of those boys to handle,” he had said in a recent conversation. The fighter, who holds a 33-7-3 record, had also claimed that despite shooting for a movie in Bulgaria for three months, he would “would go to the gym before and after we would film”. 

Even US boxing and mixed martial arts promotion firm Golden Boy Promotions’ CEO Richard Schaefer had thrown his weight behind the Southpaw star, saying, “He is, without any question, one of boxing’s most charismatic young stars, has made headlines in the ring with his exciting style. People like to see his fights. You just never know what happens, but you know that it’s going to be something exciting. The word ‘boring’ and Victor Ortiz just don’t go together.”

His stats, however, point toward the opposite. Ortiz has been on a downward spiral ever since his match against Floyd Mayweather Jr unfolded on September 17, 2011, where he was knocked out mid-apology after head-butting the 50-0 beast. Since then, he’s suffered four losses in nine matches—contrary to just two losses in 33 matches before the ‘Money’ match.

As for the recent Mexico City fight, it wasn’t until the final rounds that both fighters showed an urgency for a fight. Yet Ortiz seemed to be trying to save his gas tank for the final rounds, as he struggled with his stamina throughout the fight. Towards the end, the boxer-turned-actor even stopped relying on his movements to counter Coria’s speed and combinations. Despite the fight being a close contest, it turned out to be lackluster for viewers.

Out of shape, Ortiz faces the fans’ wrath

A fan criticized Ortiz’s physique for the fight, saying he failed to come in shape for the exhibition bout. They wrote, “Victor Ortiz in the ring looking like a loaf of bread.”

Notably, Ortiz’s professional hiatus is not over, and this was just an exhibition match. Perhaps that explains his lackluster form? But then again, given how his fights have become more spaced out with time—the last time Ortiz fought more than one match in a year was in 2014—a prolonged absence from the ring is bound to result in physical inactivity Even if he’s not out of shape, he’s bound to be a step slower.

Having said that, another social media user called out Ortiz for his outing and lack of willingness to put power behind his blows, something he was known for. They declared, “Victor Ortiz fat and terrible.”

Another fan blasted the fight saying, “Ain’t nobody watching this whack a** sh*t.” Notably, the bout was an exhibition match and the results don’t matter. Is that why none of the two fighters seemed as interested to give fans a thrilling match?

One fan was disgruntled at what they saw within the squared circle in Mexico’s CDMX, the home of elite world champions like Canelo Alvarez. This led them to label the co main event bout as something only a certain section of the world would shell out for”Yanks paid $50 for this lmaoooo😭.”

Lastly, a comment drew a parallel with a sparring session, where both fighters usually try to gauge each other, tag, and play around. The comment read, “Victor Ortiz having a sparring match wtf goin on rn.”

Well, social media users seem to have a lot of opinions on the fight, but what do you think? Let us know your thoughts on Victor Ortiz’s performance in the comments below.