Lucas Matthysse vs. Roberto Ortiz: Winner, Recap and Analysis

A bizarre and anticlimactic ending ruined what had the potential to be a great slugfest on Saturday night in Cincinnati. 

Lucas Matthysse (36-3, 34 KO) scored a KO victory over Roberto Ortiz (31-1-1) after landing a hard liver shot in the second round. It was ruled that Ortiz didn't beat the count and Matthysse was deemed the winner.

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Controversial win by Lucas Matthysse pic.twitter.com/ZgVbx0YB9e

— The Sports Junky (@TheSportsJunky1) September 7, 2014"

The action began slowly. Ortiz's herky-jerky motion seemed to give Matthysse some difficulty in the first round. By the beginning of the second round, Matthysse attempted to open up with some of his signature power shots. 

Nothing significant seemed to land until Matthysse connected with a hard left hook to the midsection. Ortiz crumpled to one knee and spit out his mouthpiece. 

Usually, that's a symbol of submission.

Ortiz appeared to try and use all of referee Benny Esteves Jr.'s count. That strategy clearly backfired. At about the 9.5 mark, Ortiz began to rise to his feet, but Esteves waved the fight off and the bout was over.

The 28-year-old Mexican looked puzzled by the decision to stop the fight, but he didn't put up much of an argument considering the situation. The shot clearly took a lot out of him. It was unclear initially whether he was pleased or upset by the stoppage.

After the bout was over, Ortiz expressed his displeasure with Esteves' decision.

Per the Showtime broadcast, post-fight interviewer Jim Gray said Esteves declined to discuss his decision on camera, but he didn't believe Ortiz had made it to his feet by the count of 10.

The replay clearly showed that Ortiz was indeed up before the count reached 10, so there are legitimate questions as to why Esteves ended the bout. Some believed Esteves dropped the ball, but most seemed to blame Ortiz for waiting so long to stand to his feet.

When the fight was over, Matthysse didn't spend much time talking about the short fight. Instead, he made it known that he wanted a rematch with Danny Garcia.

Matthysse lost a decision to Garcia back in Sept. 2013.

Ortiz saw a very big opportunity go by the boards. Most in the boxing community had never heard of Ortiz heading into the fight. After such a nondescript performance, it's unlikely his level of notoriety has grown.

Follow Brian Mazique, aka FranchisePlay, the Sports Video Game Journalist.