The main event is an IBF heavyweight eliminator that really shouldn't be a former two-time title challenger Luis Ortiz faces former IBF champion, Charles Martin.
The once-feared Ortiz has fought only once since his second loss to Deontay Wilder in November 2019 (a pathetic one round fiasco against Alexander Flores in November 2020) and with his listed age at 42 ( and rumored to be much older), one has no idea whether Ortiz is a top ten level heavyweight anymore.
Martin once held the IBF title after Tyson Fury gave it up before losing it in three rounds to Anthony Joshua but has never defeated a top twenty heavyweight, having won the vacant title with a "win" over Vyacheslav Glazkov after Glazkov won the first two rounds and suffered a significant knee injury in the third that was so bad that Glazkov was never able to return to the ring.
Martin's chin isn't great, so unless Ortiz has become so slow that he isn't able to land anything against Martin, one has to like Ortiz in this one with the superior power and track record.
The co-feature is even less thrilling as undefeated Frank Sanchez takes on European journeyman and late replacement Christian Hammer.
Sanchez won his biggest fight last time out on the Fury-Wilder III undercard with a unanimous decision over fellow undefeated prospect Efe Ajagba in a dreadfully boring fight.
Sanchez did knock Ajagba down once in the only highlight of the tedious pairing.
Hammer is a late replacement for Carlos Negron, who tested positive for Covid-19 and Hammer is a good fighter on the European level but isn't quite world-class as he has lost in every attempt to meet that level of competition in each of his five tries including losses to Tyson Fury, Alexander Povetkin, Luis Ortiz, and his last fight a stoppage defeat to Hughie Fury.
Hammer is durable, often lasts the distance, and only in his latest loss to Hughie Fury did he fail to last until the eighth round (the fight was stopped after the fifth due to a bicep injury) but Sanchez should win this on the boxing talent alone.
We welcome two new players to the boxing challenge as Vince Samano and C.J. Burney join Ramon Malpica in our annual contest!
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