Welterweight contender “Speedy” Rashidi Ellis was looking to make a statement on Saturday against former WBA “regular” junior lightweight champion Javier Fortuna at Connecticut's Mohegan Sun Casino. And he did, but even so, the end result was not what Ellis nor the Mohegan Sun crowd had hoped for. After dropping Fortuna with a left hook near the end of the third round, Ellis continued his dominance in the fourth frame. However, Fortuna took a knee with more than a minute left, without taking a punch, or throwing one. Referee Ricky Gonzalez waved the fight off and Fortuna motioned that he had an injured left shoulder. The official time was 1:53.
“I don’t like how he quit because he never quit before,” Ellis told Boxingtalk.com. “So it was kind of hard for me to see him quit but he probably saw the pressure I was going to come with. I was just warming up.”
Considering how fast Ellis is, he definitely showed patience in the opening frame, feeling his opponent out. He mainly jabbed and calmly stalked Fortuna, who largely offered up pawing right jabs. In the second frame, the quicker footed Ellis (28-1 with 19 KOs), began to pop more frequent combinations. The first noticeable one was a jab followed immediately up with two consecutive straight right hands, about midway through the stanza. As Ellis got busier, Fortuna’s work rate – he had occasional success with his straight left - would dissipate. Near the end of the round, Fortuna (39-7-1 with 28 KOs) waved his glove, inviting Ellis to get closer. Be careful what you ask for.
In the next round, Ellis, of Lynn, Massachusetts, turned up the heat, looking to land his straight right hand. Instead, he landed a serious left hook to the body with less than a minute remaining. A short time later, another left to the body sent Fortuna, a Dominican fighting out of Braintree, MA, to the canvas, his legs awkwardly twisting as he went down. He didn’t rush to get up, instead taking time to collect himself. Unfortunately for Ellis, there were only five seconds left once the action resumed.
No matter, He continued where he left off in the next round, landing more eye-catching hooks, often thrown in succession, upstairs and downstairs. At one point, after a three-hook combination – two to the head capped by one to the body – Ellis flashed a big smile. One can see why. Under his new promoter Jimmy Burchfield, he has a second nickname now, “The Savage with a Smile.”
“I like to have fun in there,” Ellis told Boxingtalk.com for a pre-fight story.
Ellis continued to focus on the hook to the body. Fortuna kept moving laterally to try to avoid the onslaught coming his way, and was offering up very little offense at this point. Shortly after, he took the knee that forced the fight’s end. Ellis looked visibly annoyed. “I wanted a great knockout highlight to add to the collection,” he said. “It was disappointing but at the end of the day I got the victory, so that’s the important thing.”
Ellis is now on a four-fight win streak – all by stoppage – since a twelve-round points loss to Roiman Villa in an IBF title eliminator in January 2023. He was doing well in that fight but got dropped twice in the final round.
Ellis believes he’s backand track and ready to face any of the welterweight champions. He will keep a close eye on the winner of the upcoming WBO title clash between champion Brian Norman Jr. and Devin Haney on November 22nd in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. However, Ellis is also willing to face anyone holding belts at junior middleweight (154), and his bout with Fortuna happened to be at that weight. “I believe 154 ponds is where he belongs right now,” said Jimmy Burchfield, Ellis’ promoter, “And he’ll fight any of the champions. We’re ready for any of the champions.”
Burchfield added, “He’s just another breed of fighter, that’s got everything – entertainment, he can punch, he’s a Sugar Ray Leonard, he’s got a little bit of everything, Muhammad Ali, he’s got everything baby.”
For the record, Ellis says he can still make 147 if a title opportunity arises there “but it’s a lot easier to make 154.” The Ellis-Fortuna main event of CES Boxing’s “Autumn Classic 2025” card live streamed on YouTube – CESFights’ channel – and the bouts will air later this month on the New England Sports Network (NESN).
“I appreciate everyone that came to the fight, that showed love and support,” said Ellis. “And whoever watched it, I appreciate everybody.” He added, “Jimmy’s really been keeping me busy. The four fights plus the involvement in Team Combat League. The whole year we’ve been working. I should definitely get a big fight, or even a title fight, right now. I’ve been in this game for so long, and I stay proving myself, so I don’t see why not.”
PHOTOS BY LAILA LANG:
