In the immediate aftermath of Vergil Ortiz's two round bludgeoning of Erickson Lubin at the Dickies Arena in Ft. Worth, Texas, Jaron Ennis, who was seated ringside, pointed at his wristwatch on his left hand. The message was very simple: the time for him and Ortiz to square up is now.
He's absolutely right.
It's very simple, these two interim champions can stake their claim as not only the best junior middleweight in the world, but for being the biggest American star in the sport. The time is now, sooner not later.
Cris Esqueda/GBP
Back a few weeks ago Ennis captured the WBA interim title by blasting out Uisma Lima in one round at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. This weekend it was Ortiz's turn, and he didn't disappoint. What was thought to be a solid match-up (Lubin came into this weekend ranked fifth in the division by Ring Magazine) instead became a one-sided blowout.
From the beginning of the bout, Lubin, a well-schooled southpaw, didn't employ all that much movement. Instead he was rather stationary, and in the second round while upon along the ropes, he was struck by a series of chopping overhand rights that not only hurt Lubin, but had him out on his feet. Referee James Green stepped in alertly to prevent Lubin from getting gravely injured. He was never knocked down, but it didn't matter. This fight was over.
It was quite a statement made by Ortiz, who has perhaps the strongest resume' of any boxer in the sport that still has not won a major world title (sorry, his WBC interim title does not count).
Cris Esqueda/GBP
“There wasn’t much to evaluate — I just capitalized on his mistakes. I took as much information as I could and used it. The adjustments I made in the second round were to just be cautious. I’m patient,” said Ortiz, who improved to 24-0(22 KOs) with his emphatic victory. Ortiz is among the most crowd pleasing fighters in the sport. But don't mistake him for a guy who punches first and thinks later.
“I feel people think I’m just a come-forward fighter. Yeah, I’m a come-forward fighter — I love the fight. That’s why I’m in boxing. But you have to be smart too, and I can be smart when I want. I kind of felt I would dominate Lubin, but I just had to believe in myself, and that’s what I did. There were so many people saying I was going to get gassed or that he was going to knock me out. Look, he’s a great fighter, but there are levels to this.”
After making these statements to Chris Mannix of DAZN, Ortiz than said, "'Boots' come over here!" It wasn't so much a request, but a demand. After circling one another for the better part of a year -- and engaging in a he said, he said, back-and-forth -- Ortiz was throwing down the gauntlet.
Cris Esqueda/GBP
For the next few minutes they got into a tense but respectful exchange over who was ducking who. But hey, why haggle over ancient history. There's a very simple way to resolve this dispute, right? Their face off looked like the perfect way to begin the process of promoting this highly anticipated match-up that could easily take place on DAZN (and hey, all you'll need is an ''ultimate'' subscription to see it!!).
The boxers themselves seem to be on board. But as you know, that's only a part of the equation. Oscar De La Hoya, the founder of Golden Boy Promotions made it very clear that unless Ortiz was the A-side, there would be an issue. Then Ortiz's manager posted this on social media.
So let me get this straight, a guy who doesn't come close to selling out a venue in his home region is the A-side? And are we talking about the same Spence who has not fought since losing to Terence Crawford in the summer of 2023? And I assume 'Slick' Rick is referring to Jermell, well, he hasn't fought since losing every round to Canelo Alvarez in 2023 and hasn't won a fight since 2022.
Please, lets not mess with Texas, here.
Honestly, the only other palatable options would be Sebastian Fundora, who is the full-blown WBC titlist at 154. Admittedly, that's an enticing bout. I'm not sure I'd have much of an issue with that one.
Meanwhile, Eddie Hearn, who made the trip to Texas with his client, stated that Ennis has options other than Ortiz. I'll make the assumption that means one of the other belt holders in the division. But it's been reported that WBO champion, Xander Zayas, will be facing WBA titlist, Abass Baraou in the beginning of 2026. Seriously, how ironic would it be for Zayas (or Baraou for that matter) to become a unified champion at junior middleweight before Ortiz or Ennis?
Matchroom Boxing
'Boogeyman' Bakhram Murtalaziev, would be a tough test for Ennis, but it would be a let down for Stateside fans.
The bottom line is this, Ortiz-Ennis should happen next and immediately for both. Ortiz is now 27, Ennis is 28. Both are right in the thick of their physical primes and at the peak of their technical prowess. Is it too much to ask for fights where both participants are under the age of 30? Boxing no longer really marinates big fights, they perpetually over-cook them.
And here's the reality, this isn't Sugar Ray Leonard-Thomas Hearns (who by the way, faced each other at basically 23 and 25 years of age back in 1981), neither are truly 'stars', but two highly talented fighters in an era that is looking for the next one. The winner would take a huge step forward in that regard.
Both Golden Boy and Matchroom have exclusive output deals with DAZN, which recently announced their 'ultimate' subscription (where you basically pay upfront for every pay-per-view card they have a year at a time in advance), needs bouts like this to make it worthwhile. Not prelude cards that eventually lead to Ortiz-Ennis.
This fight shouldn't be too difficult to make in theory if both sides truly want it.
They do, right?
