Mayweather vs. Ortiz: Victor Has Only Himself to Blame for Controversial KO

I felt for Victor Ortiz. Like so many casual observers, I initially thought Ortiz got jobbed, that referee Joe Cortez blew it with the communication into the ring and that, as such, Ortiz deserved at least another second or two to get his guard up against Floyd Mayweather Jr. and give himself a chance to win the fight.

I thought Ortiz had come close to pulling off the upset after putting "Money May" on his heels with a flurry of fists, pinning him against the ropes and using his strength to his ultimate advantage. I even thought "Vicious" Victor deserved some slack for the head-butt after seeing him apologize so profusely to Mayweather immediately after the move and being so candidly humble about the loss once the fight was over.

Then I looked back at the tape, and I couldn't help but see that Ortiz was to blame for his own defeat, that he was overmatched to begin with and was done in earlier by a rash of stupid mistakes.

Mayweather simply outclassed Ortiz for the vast majority of the first three-and-a-half rounds. Ortiz could hardly keep up with Mayweather's quickness and struggled to land much of anything against Money's vaunted defense. Meanwhile, "Pretty Boy" Floyd was calculating and careful but boxed with precision throughout. The idea was not to knock out Ortiz but rather bludgeon him through 12 rounds into a unanimous decision.

And then came the bizarre finish, when everything went horribly wrong for Ortiz, who, though a very talented fighter, laid bare his youthful naivete and lack of speed in a matter of moments. A furious flurry by Ortiz in the latter half of the fourth round had Mayweather shelled up in a cocoon behind his arms, dodging Ortiz's uppercuts and errant slugs. A more patient and experienced fighter would have picked his spots, but Ortiz instead succumbed to frustration and let his head fly into Floyd's jaw.

That was Big Mistake No. 1. Gone was Ortiz's positional advantage, as referee Joe Cortez stepped in to separate the two and penalize Ortiz for his illegal move. Ortiz then went out of his way to apologize to Mayweather for his mistake.

That was Big Mistake No. 2. A fighter as fierce and competitive as Mayweather can smell fear from a mile away, rendering Ortiz's shame and weakness a terrible stench that Money had to do away with at the next available moment. The two fighters met in the middle of the ring to hug it out, after which Ortiz looked to Cortez for a signal that the fight was back on, leaving his arms down in the process.

That was Big Mistake No. 3, the one that ultimately cost Ortiz the fight. Mayweather saw the opportunity for a swift end and seized it before Ortiz even had time to realize what was going on. A devastating left followed by a finishing right sent Ortiz to the mat for good, the WBC Welterweight Championship belt no longer his.

In a matter of moments, Ortiz committed a comedy of errors—he aggravated his opponent, he showed weakness and he neglected to protect himself at all times—that invariably resulted in his demise.

Surely, Ortiz is no tomato can, and it's not exactly unusual to feel empathy for him. Against Mayweather, he was a talented but wholly overmatched and inexperienced fighter who shot himself in the foot three times too many, given the slim margin of error he was working with.

As a human being, I feel for the kid. Everybody makes mistakes and deserves a shot at redemption.

But as a professional boxer, I can't help but wonder who or what allowed Ortiz to end up being such a detriment to his own cause. Isn't that why these guys train for months and months on end for a single fight? Isn't that why these guys watch hours and hours of their opponent's tape?

It's not as though Ortiz had never won anything before or been in the spotlight. He came in with a record of 29-2-2, including 22 knockouts, and had shown tremendous resilience and toughness in beating Andre Berto to claim the WBC Welterweight title back in April.

But, for whatever reason, the limelight got to Ortiz this time around. He blinked, and by the time he opened his eyes, all he could see was Mayweather's gloved fist already half-way through its devastating motion.

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