Pavlik anxious to get back into ring at Struthers show

He'll fight Pedro Ortega in a scheduled 10-round bout on Friday.
By BOB ROTH
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
YOUNGSTOWN -- With Friday's pro boxing show at the Struthers Field House less than a week away, Kelly Pavlik, Youngstown's undefeated and world-ranked middleweight, is raring to go and wishing the fight was even sooner.
Pavlik (20-0, 18 KOs), trained by Jack Loew, is in a scheduled 10-rounder at the 164-pound limit against Pedro Ortega (30-13-1, 19 KOs) from Tijuana, Mexico.
The bout is a co-feature to a featherweight 10-rounder between Fred Neal (17-2-2, 12 KOs) from Cleveland and Steven Luevano (23-0, 11 KOs) from La Puente, Calif.
"I get eager and am a little more on edge when I fight at home because I really want to perform well and please my local fan base," Pavlik said.
"Because of several months of ring inactivity and a few bouts that didn't happen, I have been training at a grueling pace and am ready to go if the fight was today."
Title bout veteran
Ortega, a 31-year-old veteran, has fought in 15 varied alphabet title bouts in the past six years, with his last two fights being for the IBA Continental middleweight championship.
Ortega won that title with a ninth-round TKO and, by way of a 12-round decision, lost it. The fight before those bouts had him go for an IBA Continental super middleweight title and lose by split decision.
"I know this guy is durable and I know he has punching power and that he isn't just coming here to show up," Pavlik said, "but I know what I have to do regardless of who my opponent is.
"The most important thing I have to do is not be impatient and be ready for whatever Ortega brings to this fight."
Rankings in the varied top organizations of boxing have Pavlik listed from eighth to 15th among the world's middleweights.
Struthers card
With the worldwide Telefutura Network televising the Friday card in Struthers, the Pavlik-Ortega bout will begin shortly after 9 p.m. The Luevano-Neal featherweight 10-round bout will follow.
Another Loew-trained fighter from Southside Boxing Club, Darnell Boone (1-0, 1 KO) from Youngstown, will be in a 168-pound four-rounder with James Williams (1-1) from Columbus.
There will be two more four-rounders featuring featherweights, with former standout amateur Carney Bowman (1-0) from York, Pa., fighting Miguel Alvarez from Columbus (2-0) and Eric Nemo making his pro debut, also from York, Pa., fighting Yamin Mohammad (1-5) from Dayton.
A six-round bout will be announced during the week.
Doors will open at 7 p.m., with a first bout at 8 p.m.
For ticket information, call Loew at (330) 501-5713, Mike Cefalde at (330) 792-6954 or Mike Pavlik at (330) 788-4157.