Mayweather vs. Ortiz: Could Money May Be Disqualified for KO Punch?

Other than the obvious and already rampant public backlash, Floyd Mayweather Jr. isn't likely to face any repercussions for his cheap shots on Victor Ortiz to claim the WBC Welterweight Championship belt by KO on Saturday night because, as unjust as it may seem, the hits were legal.

Not sportsmanlike or karmically satisfying, but legal nonetheless.

To recap, Mayweather and Ortiz were locked in a back-and-forth battle into the fourth round. Mayweather controlled the first half of the round fairly handily before Ortiz came back with a "Vicious" barrage to pin "Money" against the ropes. Part way through the flurry, Ortiz failed to land several consecutive attempts at Mayweather's head and, in the heat of the moment, lunged at Money with his own noggin. That prompted referee Joe Cortez to jump in and assess Ortiz with a penalty for his illegal headbutt.

Ortiz went ahead and apologized to Mayweather before the two met in the middle to hug it out and resume the fight. Not a moment after they broke their embrace, Mayweather clocked Ortiz with a left-right combo while Cortez was looking away, and before Ortiz had the opportunity to put his hands back in a defensive position, thereby sending Ortiz to the mat for a devastating KO.

Technically speaking, Mayweather's hits were legal, as they came after Cortez had indicated time in to the keeper at ringside. Technically speaking, the onus was on Ortiz to defend against Mayweather's blows, so goes the old boxing dictum "protect yourself at all times."

Realistically speaking, Money's hits were cheap, they were reprehensible and they brought to an end a fight that was incredibly entertaining and in which Ortiz actually had a shot to win and defend his title.

Judging from Ortiz's reaction to the ending, it would appear unlikely that he and his camp would lodge any sort of complaint. Ortiz was incredibly humble and accepting in defeat, not surprising given the incredible obstacles that Ortiz had overcome in his life to come so close to the pinnacle of boxing.

And frankly, Ortiz shouldn't try to strip Mayweather of the win, nor should anyone else. As much as we, the viewing public, may wish for Money May to suffer the wrath of the WBC's governing body, he was (according to the rules) well within the legal limits in the way he ended the bout.

More important is the way that history will judge him. By all measures, Mayweather is a great fighter and will go down as one of the best of all time, regardless of weight class. However, this victory plants a big, fat asterisk on top of his legacy.

Right next to the one that currently reads, "Never fought Manny Pacquiao."

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