Jamaine Ortiz thinks he had coronavirus before his last fight

Press Release

16/04/2020

Jamaine Ortiz thinks he had coronavirus before his last fight

Even in his wildest dreams, undefeated New England lightweight Jamaine "The Technician" Ortiz (13-0, 7 KOs) never could have ever imagined that his 24th birthday, later this month, would fall smack in the middle of a worldwide health pandemic. When he turns 24 on April 28th, Ortiz figured he'd be preparing for training camp with a spring fight date set, likely fighting for a regional belt of some sort.  He certainly didn't think boxing would be banned around the world, gyms closed by a state mandate, and people wearing face-masks and plastic gloves in public. And, to boot, his job as a licensed carpenter closed shop last Friday. Like everybody else in the Bay State, Ortiz is basically self-quarantined at home, although he's still running, training, eating well and doing everything else to maintain decent shape. Not elite boxing shape, though, which simply isn't possible under these restrictive and trying times.
 
Instead of sparring, he's shadow boxing, jumping rope has replaced pad-work with his trainers, Rocky Gonzalez and Carlos Garcia, and now his living room serves as his gym. Times have been dramatically altered, indeed, even celebrating birthdays, which Jamaine fully understands and accepts.  
 
"I don't think my birthday will be any different," Ortiz said. "I usually spend it alone with my mother and daughter (4-year-old Amira) and this year probably won't be any different. I won't be able to get in a whole bunch of sparring rounds that I usually ask for (laughing) as presents from some of my friends."  
 
Fortunately, though, Ortiz was able to fight this past February 28 in his first action in six months, headlining a CES Boxing-promoted card at home in Worcester, Massachusetts, in which he registered a second-round stoppage of Mexico's "Loco" Luis Ronaldo Castillo (22-6, 17 KOs).
 
Ortiz aspires to attend medical school after he hangs up his gloves for good, to become a doctor or researcher. He reads a lot about medicine, especially holistic treatments, and he believes that he may have already had the coronavirus. "Five weeks before my last fight," he explained, "I was in the hospital with a temperature of 104.5. Just about everybody I knew was sick, my grandmother had pneumonia. I never really get sick. I had a flu shot for seven years without an issue. I developed a cough, too. I felt like I was going to die. I can't say with certainty I had Coronavirus (there was no test available then), but I feel like I may have had it."  
 
Ortiz will be ready for the night the ring bell will finally sound again. "I hope to be fighting again in July or August, but, no matter when boxing returns, I'll be ready to go.
 
"This is a serious, contagious disease. People should use common sense: wash your hands, stay separated by six feet, and stay at home, especially the elderly and people with respiratory problems. Don't take any unnecessary risks or panic, either. This isn't the end of the world!"