Heavyweight Luis Ortiz wants a fight, a belt and a return to Cuba

Luis Ortiz wants a fight and would like to one day return to his homeland in Cuba, but the unbeaten heavyweight has no guarantee of either.

Ortiz (25-0, 22 knockouts) came here to attend the Canelo Alvarez-Amir Khan bout and to attempt to nail down details from his promoter, Golden Boy, and broadcaster HBO about when and who he’ll fight next.

Since June 2015, Ortiz, 37, has been a wrecking ball, knocking out four consecutive opponents by the end of the seventh round or earlier. But he’s been unable to finalize a deal to fight Russian Alexander Ustinov as part of a World Boxing Assn. tournament.

Part of an effort to stage that bout in Cuba featured an April fact-finding mission paid for by a St. Louis company and Golden Boy in which veteran promoter Don Chargin and veteran publicist Bill Caplan visited officials in the country to attempt to broker a deal similar to one that allowed a Major League Baseball exhibition to be played there this spring.

Chargin said that, for now, he doesn’t feel comfortable with Cuban promises to guarantee Ortiz’s safe passage in and out of the country.

“If Golden Boy can do it, I would love to” fight in Cuba, Ortiz told the Los Angeles Times on Friday. “I have [tried], and I’ve talked to Golden Boy about it.”

Ortiz’s manager said his fighter is not permitted in Cuba right now, unlike another Cuban who has fought in the U.S., Yuriorkis Gamboa.

For now, Ortiz said he is hoping to settle his training plan. “I’m waiting. I’m herding all the cattle into a corner, where they’ll have no choice but to fight,” Ortiz said.

The heavyweight division is especially vibrant now, with unbeaten American Deontay Wilder and unbeaten Britons Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua all wearing belts.

Ortiz said he hopes to gain one too, saying it’s up to the officials he’ll talk to this weekend to help him press the matter.