Promoter Oscar De La Hoya said today that he wants interim WBC junior middleweight champion Virgil Ortiz Jr. to fight Terence Crawford, Sebastian Fundura, or Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis on February 22 in Riyadh.
Oscar wish list for Virgil Jr
- Jeron Ennis
- Sebastian Fundura
- Terence Crawford
De La Hoya’s first choice is ‘Boots’ Ennis (33-0, 29 KOs), but he doesn’t believe Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn is still following Vergil Jr.’s lackluster performance. (22-0, 21 KOs) looking to fight Jaron in his rematch against Karen Chukhadzian on Nov. 9.
“It’s one of those three. It’s one of those three,” De La Hoya said of Virgil Ortiz Jr. wanting the big name.
Oscar wants a big name for Virgil Jr.
Ennis was exposed. In this fight, and it would be a mistake for Hearn to put him with a killer like Virgil Ortiz Jr.
This fight showed that bots are vulnerable and can be outboxed. Maybe Hearn won’t risk putting him with Virgil Jr. and making him lose all the hard work he’s put into trying to make himself a star.
WBA 154-lb champion Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) is still in a holding pattern, waiting to see if Canelo Alvarez throws him a bone by giving him a shot at their unified titles at 168. This fight is unlikely. To be
The 26-year-old Virgil still lacks the popularity to want fighters like Crawford, WBC, and WBO champion Fundura to fight him. This is very dangerous for him, and it will be very difficult to compete against a powerful youngster like Ortiz Jr. He is currently in the ‘who needs it’ club.
In other words, Ortiz Jr. is in a lot more trouble than when he doesn’t step in to entice the Saudis’ Fundura, Crawford, or Bots Ennis to tangle with him.
If His Excellency Turki Al-Sheikh can help attract one of these big names, Virgil Jr. will have a great opponent on February 22. However, without Turkey’s help, Virgil will have to look the other way for De La Hoya to face the former WBC interim 154-lb champion. Serhii Bohachuk irematch.
Virgil defeated Bohchuk (24-2, 23 KOs) on August 10 by a controversial 12-round majority decision in which many fans saw Serhii winning.
