He is 34 years of age and in the prime of his now legendary career. Come Sept. 17 at the world-famous MGM Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, the scene of some of the greatest fights in boxing history, Floyd Mayweather will continue his march to the Boxing Hall of Fame against “Vicious” Victor Ortiz from Ventura, Calif.
The two warriors were in New York earlier this week as they continued their cross-country tour to promote the fight. The self-named “Money” Mayweather last fought on May 1, 2010, when he walked all over “Sugar” Shane Mosley, the once invincible fighter who Manny Pacquiao destroyed a few months ago. Mayweather knows he will not be able to walk over Ortiz, who is 10 years younger than him at 24 years of age.
“He’s tough,” said Mayweather (41-0, 25 KOs). “He’s strong and he will be a challenge.”
Both fighters have agreed to pre-fight blood testing by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency–a fact not lost on boxing fans around the world, as Mayweather says he will not fight Pacquiao until he agrees to the same testing. The fight may never, ever happen, as Pacquiao, to this day, refuses to be blood-tested pre-fight, thus depriving the world of what could be the biggest fight, dollar-wise, in boxing history.
Meanwhile, Ortiz (29-2, 22 KOs) is ready to set boxing history when he and Mayweather touch gloves on Sept. 17, which, by the way, is Mexican Independence Day–a day that Don King has turned into the traditional staging day for mega fights in Vegas. Mayweather is a six-time, five-division undefeated world champion. Ortiz is the reigning Welterweight WBC World Champion.
The fight will be presented on HBO Pay-Per-View and, like all of Mayweather’s past rumbles, should be a huge moneymaker for all parties.