Victor Ortiz discusses Week 3 of ‘Dancing With the Stars’

The Times has boxer Victor Ortiz, a former WBC welterweight champion, guest-blogging while he competes on “Dancing With the Stars.” Each week while he competes on the show, Ortiz will answer a few questions from Sports Now editor Houston Mitchell and give some insight into the competition. Here are Ortiz’s thoughts about Week 3, which he offered via email.

Q: A lot of people think of pro athletes as living a great life without thinking about where they came from. You mentioned not being able to go to your prom because you were too broke. Did this week’s prom theme bring back good or bad memories?

Well, yes, it was hard that my teen years were not that ‘picture perfect’ time in my life, but I try not to spend too much time thinking about the past. This week’s prom theme really made me reflect on how far I’ve come and how I didn’t let anything in my life get me down. I used all the bad things to make me stronger. Honestly, look how lucky I am, my first prom is on national TV, how many people can say that?

Q: You got your highest scores yet this week. Do you have more confidence now than in Week 1?

Definitely! I never wanted to be in the bottom, and I took that as a wake-up call to work harder and dedicate myself to learning the dances the best I could. I think each week, like with anything new you try, it takes some time to get into the groove of things. I really just wanted to prove to everyone that I was dedicated ... and that I could dance!

Q. How scary is it to not only learn a new dance, but also have to lift your partner multiple times, knowing she was relying on you for her safety?

It’s all about trust. If Lindsay trusts me to lift her, I want to make sure to do it right. Believe me, we practiced those lifts many, many times in rehearsal, and it takes time to learn how to dance with another person like that. Once you have it down, it felt pretty cool to know you can do it and make it look good too! I just tried to channel my inner Patrick Swayze ...

Q. Out of the bottom two this week. How much of a joy would it to be to win the Mirrorball Trophy, and if you do, do you bring it to the ring in your next fight?

I would love to get the Mirrorball Trophy! Being an athlete, I am naturally competitive and I like to win, but also it would be pretty cool to know that I could dance that well! (And America thought so too!) Not too sure that I would bring it to a fight, but I do have a spot on my mantel that the trophy would look pretty good on.

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