[5] Dorticos sought fights against Murat Gassiev, Beibut Shumenov, and Denis Lebedev but was ultimately unable to get any of them in the ring.

[7] However, the WBA allowed Lebedev to unify against IBF title-holder Victor Emilio Ramírez before facing Dorticos.

[8] In a thrilling fight, Dorticos stopped Kalenga in the tenth round via technical knockout (TKO) to become a world champion.

In round ten, Dorticos once again landed a flurry a punches on Kalenga, at which point the referee stopped the fight.

[9] Following his victory, Dorticos entered a purse bid for a fight against WBA (Regular) champion Beibut Shumenov.

A day after being elevated to WBA (Regular) champion, Dorticos joined the World Boxing Super Series.

A percentage of the gate revenue will be donated to the San Antonio Food Bank to aid victims of Hurricane Harvey.

[13] At the official weigh-in, Dmitry Kudryashov initially missed weight by half a pound, coming in at 200 1⁄2 lbs.

Eventually, Dorticos gained the upper hand by landing a series of one-two combos, as Kudryashov retreated behind his high guard.

It was announced that he would face the one-time WBA Interim cruiserweight title challenger Mateusz Masternak in the quarterfinal bout, which was held on October 20, 2018, at the CFE Arena in Orlando, Florida.

[22] Dorticos advanced to the tournament semifinals, where was set to face the reigning IBF titleholder Andrew Tabiti, who earned his berth with a unanimous decision victory against Ruslan Fayfer.

[25] Tabiti was confident in his ability to beat Dorticos during the pre-fight interviews, stating: "I’ve watched his fights, I think it is fair to say that he is flat-footed.

[27] Dorticos won the fight by a tenth-round knockout, flooring Tabiti with a well placed right hand, which left him unable to rise from the canvas for several minutes afterwards.

[28] Dorticos was scheduled to face the former WBO cruiserweight titlist Mairis Briedis in the WBSS tournament finals.

[34] Dorticos faced Jesse Bryan on November 20, 2021, at the Manual Artime Community Center Theater in Miami, Florida.