Virgil Ortiz Jr. vs. Serhii Bohachuk: Fight Preview and Statistical Breakdown
On August 10, in Las Vegas, USA, a fight for the WBC interim light middleweight title will take place between Ukrainian Serhii Bohachuk and American Virgil Ortiz Jr..
Ready To Fight presents the statistics for this showdown.
Serhii Bohachuk
Country: Ukraine
Age: 29
Weight Class: Light Middleweight (up to 69.85 kg)
Height: 183 cm
Reach: 185 cm
Stance: Orthodox
Record: 25 wins, 23 by knockout, 1 loss
KO Percentage: 95.83%
Total Career Rounds: 97
Recent Fights:
- Unanimous Decision (UD) win over Brian Mendoza
- First-round knockout (KO) win over Patrick Allotey
- Sixth-round knockout (KO) win over Nathaniel Gallimore
- Second-round knockout (KO) win over Aaron Coley
- Referee Technical Decision (RTD) win after the sixth round over Raphael Igbokwe
Total Rounds in Recent Fights: 27
Average Rounds per Recent Fight: 5.4
Longest and Shortest Recent Fights: Longest – 12 rounds (UD win) / Shortest – 1 round (KO win)
Winning Percentage in Recent Fights: 100%
KO Percentage in Recent Fights: 80%
Fight Frequency in Recent Fights: 1.25 fights per year
Total Opponent Record at Time of Fight: 118 wins, 19 losses, 2 draws
Best Opponent Record: Brian Mendoza (22 wins, 3 losses)
Worst Opponent Record: Nathaniel Gallimore (22 wins, 6 losses, 1 draw)
Virgil Ortiz Jr.
Country: USA
Age: 26
Weight Class: Light Middleweight (up to 69.85 kg)
Height: 178 cm
Reach: 178 cm
Stance: Orthodox
Record: 21 wins, 21 by knockout, 0 losses
KO Percentage: 100%
Total Career Rounds: 71
Recent Fights:
- First-round knockout (KO) win over Thomas Dulorme
- First-round technical knockout (TKO) win over Fredrick Lawson
- Ninth-round technical knockout (TKO) win over Michael McKinson
- Eighth-round technical knockout (TKO) win over Egidijus Kavaliauskas
- Seventh-round knockout (KO) win over Maurice Hooker
Total Rounds in Recent Fights: 26
Average Rounds per Recent Fight: 5.2
Longest and Shortest Recent Fights: Longest – 9 rounds (TKO win) / Shortest – 1 round (TKO and KO wins)
Winning Percentage in Recent Fights: 100%
KO Percentage in Recent Fights: 100%
Fight Frequency in Recent Fights: 1 fight per year
Total Opponent Record at Time of Fight: 127 wins, 11 losses, 5 draws
Best Opponent Record: Michael McKinson (22 wins, 0 losses)
Worst Opponent Record: Thomas Dulorme (26 wins, 6 losses, 1 draw)
Fight Background
The clash between Bohachuk and Ortiz is initially hailed as a contender for Fight of the Year, and rightfully so. Both boxers are aggressive, paving their way to victory with heavy punches and a relentless body attack. Both have a high knockout percentage and enjoy physically breaking down their opponents. Stylistically, they are made for an all-out fight in the ring.
In 2022, Virgil was among the top candidates to fight Terence Crawford. At that time, he had defeated Samuel Vargas, Maurice Hooker, and Egidijus Kavaliauskas in one year. Another year later, in the summer of 2022, he added a victory over the previously undefeated Michael McKinson to his record. All four were defeated by stoppage. However, the fight against Crawford never materialized, nor did he continue his career at welterweight.
Ortiz faced health issues due to constant weight cuts, which prevented him from fighting Eimantas Stanionis. He returned to boxing only after recovering in 2024, now competing in the light middleweight division. His comeback has been successful, with two first-round victories leading to the title fight.
2021 was a turning point for Bohachuk as well. That year, he suffered his first career loss. He was winning on points against Brandon Adams until he was caught with a heavy shot.
Subsequently, Bohachuk changed trainers, worked more on his boxing skills, and saw improvements. These changes yielded results.
Firstly, the Ukrainian now builds his attacks better and finds opportunities to land punches more effectively. Secondly, in 2024, Serhii finally got a title shot and made the most of it.
Initially, Sebastian Fundora was supposed to fight Bohachuk, with the full WBC title on the line. However, when Tim Tszyu lost his opponent, Fundora stepped in as his replacement, also gaining an additional opportunity – Tszyu and Fundora would fight for the WBC and WBO titles, leaving Bohachuk with the interim title.
However, Bohachuk was not discouraged, and the change of opponent suited him. The new opponent was Brian Mendoza, a dangerous American with heavy punches. Bohachuk stated that he had always sparred and fought with fighters similar in build and style to Mendoza, making the fight more favorable than against Fundora.
In the ring, this was confirmed. Bohachuk kept attacking throughout the twelve rounds, never resting, nor allowing his opponent to rest. Several counter punches from Mendoza landed, but Serhii endured them. As a result, the Ukrainian threw 822 punches in the fight (an average of 68.2 per round) and became the WBC interim champion. This victory was his first non-stoppage win, but he completed the distance impressively.
This stylistic matchup is simply amazing. It's worth noting that Ortiz's level of opposition is slightly higher than Bohachuk's. Virgil moves well on his feet and lands precise power shots – for instance, he knocked out Dulorme with a body shot after precisely targeting the spot.
However, this does not guarantee he will dominate or even win. The fight against Kavaliauskas, though in a different division and a while ago, is telling. Egidijus was unafraid to trade punches and tried to dictate terms with power shots. Sometimes, Virgil had to avoid hooks and uppercuts. Bohachuk excels with hooks and uppercuts at close and mid-range.
Moreover, Bohachuk is a durable and persistent fighter, familiar with Virgil from sparring sessions. He noted Ortiz's high level and believes he can be defeated.
4 Key Facts About the Fight
- Bohachuk and Ortiz combined have knocked out 44 of their 46 opponents. A true knockout show.
- For Bohachuk, this will be his third fight in Las Vegas. For Ortiz, his seventh. Ortiz has never fought outside the USA. Bohachuk has fought outside the USA three times but has never lost in America.
- The last opponent Ortiz fought with a longer reach than Bohachuk (185 cm) was in 2021. Maurice Hooker had a reach of 203 cm and lost to Virgil by knockout in the 7th round. Serhii is the tallest opponent (183 cm) in Ortiz's career.
- Ortiz has similar height (178 cm) and reach (178 cm) to Brian Mendoza, whom Bohachuk defeated by decision in his previous fight.