Vergil Ortiz Jr. will face Tim Tzu on August 3rd, which was announced this week, but Ortiz's team is asking people not to jump to conclusions looking ahead to Saturday night.
Ortiz will fight Thomas Dulorme on Saturday, April 27th at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California. The bout will be the co-centerpiece of a DAZN card co-headlined by former unified junior welterweight world champion Jose Ramirez vs. Lances Barthelemy.
The talk of the town is clear. It was announced earlier this week that Ortiz (20-0, 20 KOs) will fight Tim Tzu on August 3 as part of a megacard that pits Terrence Crawford against Israel Madrimov for the WBA junior middleweight world title. It was announced on. For Tse's fight to become a reality, Ortiz must first defeat Delorme (26-6-1, 17 KOs).
The supercard, set for August 3 in Los Angeles, will mark the first Saudi-backed Riyadh season event in the United States, and the Ortiz fight is one of the most anticipated on the card.
“We're hearing the same thing as everyone else,” Ortiz's trainer Robert Garcia told BoxingScene. “We're looking at Thomas Dulorme. We're not thinking about Thomas Dulorme.”
Garcia quickly brushes off any topics other than Durorme. “After this game we can start something, but for now it's only Delorme,” Garcia said.
The experienced Dulorme was notable for being knocked out in a junior welterweight world title fight against Terrence Crawford in 2015. He has lost three of his past four fights, two of which were first-round knockouts to Jaron “Boots” Ennis; He defeated Eimantas Stanionis by 12 round decision.
Delome has been a professional for 16 years, and Garcia isn't ignoring that. This weekend also marks Durorme's first bout at junior middleweight.
“Dulome is an experienced fighter, but he's awkward. He'll be a good challenge,” Garcia said. “I know Virgil and he's definitely one of the strongest fighters I've ever worked with. That should be the big difference, but Delorme is a very experienced fighter. It’s a fighter.”