Wilder survives pummeling to stop Ortiz in 10th

By: AP - 6 years ago

NEW YORK — Deontay Wilder was out on his feet.

Forget defending his WBC heavyweight title, Wilder was lucky to find his corner when the seventh round concluded.

About 10 minutes later, he was strutting around the Barclays Center ring, his belt secure, but his reputation as being untouchable severely tarnished.

Wilder survived a pummeling from Luis Ortiz, then knocked out the challenger in the 10th round Saturday night to retain his crown.

Befitting the undefeated champion from Alabama, it was a wild affair for the final few rounds after a dull series of pawing and gesturing by Wilder gave Ortiz a solid lead.

Wilder, 32, is 40-0 (win-loss) with 39 knockouts. Ortiz, 38, is 28-1.