The boxing world is hoping to see Vergil Ortiz Jr and Jaron Ennis in the ring together in 2026.
Ortiz extended his unbeaten record to 24-0 with a destructive second round TKO victory over Erickson Lubin on Saturday, just a few weeks after Ennis won his 154lb debut with a first round stoppage win against Uisma Lima.
After Ortiz’s win, a fiery face-off with ‘Boots’ took place in the ring, with fans now eager to see the two men square off with one another next year.
Legendary fighter-turned-promoter Oscar De La Hoya has now explained to FightHype what needs to happen for the bout to take place, revealing that his man Ortiz needs to be viewed as the A-side.
“This can be a great negotiation. When I say it has to be favourable to Vergil, that’s the obvious case. Look at what he did and look at what he is. Vergil is the man. Having this fight in Las Vegas can be huge, but Ortiz has to be the favourite here when it comes to negotiations. As long as they’re favourable we’ll make the fight happen.”
De La Hoya was then asked what would happen if promoter Eddie Hearn claimed the negotiation needs to favour his fighter Ennis instead.
“He better not. There’s no question that I have the man. There’s no question that Vergil is the man. These negotiations will be negotiations just like any other fight. It will go back and forth but at the end of the day Vergil is the man.”
Having watched Ortiz’s victory from ringside, Ennis shared his honest rating of what he made of his rival’s performance.
