'Insane power!' Deontay Wilder survives scare to knock out Luis Ortiz in the 7th round (VIDEO)

WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder set up a colossal February encounter with Tyson Fury by winning his rematch with Cuban fighter Luis Ortiz in Las Vegas, despite the American being outboxed for the majority of the contest.

Wilder was down significantly on the scorecards and hadn't landed anything of note before launching a thunderbolt right hand down the middle which sent Ortiz sprawling to the canvas in the seventh round of the rematch of their March 2018 first meeting, also won by Wilder by 10th round TKO.

Ortiz made it back to his feet but was unable to beat the 10-count and was left stunned by the fight's conclusion, pounding the ropes in frustration. 

The 40-year-old fighter had flummoxed Wilder for the entirety of the fight, using deft footwork and savvy boxing skills to frustrate the undefeated American but, as Wilder has said in the past, he only needs two seconds to finish a fight while his opponents need to box a perfect 12-round fight.

And when that thunderous shot eventually found its mark, Ortiz was unable to produce the same type of Lazarus-like comeback we saw from Tyson Fury when he fought Wilder a little under a year ago.

"I found my measurement, seen the shot and took it," said Wilder, whose record improves to 42-0-1. 

"We have Tyson Fury the rematch next. It's set to be done in February so we will see how that goes and then after that I am looking for a unification bout.

"The heavyweight division is too small to have so many belts lingering around, there should be one champion and I think I am the perfect man for that job."

Wilder's win will have been watched with great interest in the Fury household as now that Ortiz speedbump has been navigated, the most anticipated rematch in the heavyweight division in years can take place in February.

It is a sequel to their December 18 first meeting which was scored as a draw after Fury was dropped and nearly defeated in the fight's closing stages after dominating the early stages. 

Both men have been vocal in their desire for a rematch and one suspects that the heavyweight division will have significantly more clarity in the next few months, particularly when you consider Anthony Joshua's make-or-break rematch with Andy Ruiz next month.