Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Jaron “Boots” Ennis wasted no time facing off in the middle of the Dickies Arena ring on Saturday, after the Texan battered Erickson Lubin in a one-sided fight in Fort Worth.
Ortiz (24-0, 22 KOs) and Ennis (35-0, 31 KOs) are two unbeaten punchers entering the prime years of their respective careers, both violent and achieving great success from opposite corners of America. Having circled for long enough, they were finally a few feet from one another this weekend, talking up a superfight — a bout so big it doesn’t even need a world title to headline the sport.
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“This is the fight that has to happen,” Ortiz said about Ennis. “This is it.”
Ortiz barely broke a sweat from his calculating dominance of Lubin, who struggled with the home fighter’s rigid defense despite a near-constant attack.
It was Ortiz’s first knockout at super welterweight following recent decision wins over Serhii Bohachuk and Israil Madrimov.
The Golden Boy boxer has run a gauntlet already at 154 pounds, but his toughest test may well be next, as both he and “Boots” seem adamant about colliding once and for all.
“It’s the best fight in boxing,” said Ennis, who had watched his rival’s performance from the front row. “I’m going to show I’m the best in the world.”
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Ortiz’s promoter Oscar De La Hoya wanted reporters at Saturday’s post-fight press conference to know that they should have the “upper hand” in negotiations over Ennis and his rep, Eddie Hearn.
“I told Eddie and ‘Boots,’ do not come and watch Vergil live, because you’re going to be afraid of what you see. So, we’ll see.”
De La Hoya said he’d “sit down” with Hearn, but wants “favorable terms” because Ortiz is “the better man.”
“Hopefully Eddie Hearn calls us and we can get Vergil what he wants,” De La Hoya said. “And we will make a superfight happen — that’s the bottom line.”
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Ortiz said there are other big bouts for him outside of “Boots.” He said he wants “all the belts,” that the division is “stacked,” and he is here to “fight the best,” regardless.
Ennis wasn’t the only fighter in attendance.
Errol Spence Jr., also ringside, hasn’t fought since his brutal loss to Terence Crawford in 2023, but a fight against Ortiz would still do big business in their home state. Ortiz said he wants Crawford, too.
“It could be ‘Boots,’ Spence, [or] Crawford next, if he’s willing to do it,” Ortiz said. “That’s the one I’ve been calling for, for a while. I think it’s a great fight to make happen — still.”
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Ortiz’s manager, Rick Mirigian, echoed the calls for Ortiz vs. Spence on social media Sunday.
De La Hoya said: “Vergil will fight anybody. He wants to be legendary, he wants to be the best. I have no problem making the fight. I’m happy we can promote a super champion like Vergil Ortiz.”
Regardless, De La Hoya still circled back to Boots.
“I love promoting huge fights, I love promoting great fighters, and this [Ortiz vs. Ennis] is a fight that the whole world will want to watch.”