Oscar De La Hoya says he's working to 'patch things up' with Vergil Ortiz Jnr
May 1, 2026 • 3:36 PM ET
Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy PromotionsLAS VEGAS – With a July 14 arbitration date looming for unbeaten WBC interim junior-middleweight champion Vergil Ortiz Jnr and his promoter Oscar De La Hoya, an olive branch has been extended.
De La Hoya told reporters Friday that his team is in active conversations with Ortiz’s team to “patch things up” before the matter could ultimately be settled by a federal judge in Nevada.
Saying he’s compelled to “work things out,” and that “this has gone on long enough,” De La Hoya indicated he wants the opposing lawsuits between the sides to go away and work on getting Texas’ 28-year-old Ortiz, 24-0 (22 KOs), back in the ring.
A showdown versus the winner of the June 27 WBO/WBA title defense by Puerto Rico’s Xander Zayas and unbeaten former unified welterweight champion Jaron “Boots” Ennis would be ideal, De La Hoya said.
“If he wants to talk, I’d be happy to take the call or come sit with him,” Ortiz’s manager Rick Mirigian told BoxingScene Friday.
It was the talks over an Ortiz fight with Ennis following Ortiz’s second-round knockout of Erickson Lubin in November that sparked the divide, with the Ortiz camp complaining that Golden Boy only offered him $3 million for the bout and declined to offer other opportunities.
Golden Boy countered that Mirigian was improperly shopping Ortiz to other promoters by claiming incorrectly that the promoter’s streaming deal with DAZN had expired.
Lost in the feuding was the future of Ortiz, who has performed so strongly in defeating Lubin, former 154lbs champion Israil Madrimov and former WBC interim champion Serhii Bohachuk in succession.
Mirigian said he’s been in contact for the past three weeks with Golden Boy President Eric Gomez while making other fights – including the May 22 main event in San Jose, California, for Amari Jones – and the topic of Ortiz has been raised.
“Productive talks. Not a remedy, but there is now an open line of communication,” Mirigian said. “If we end up talking to Oscar, I would welcome that.”
If the three-day arbitration occurs, the expectation is that a ruling on the matter – freeing Ortiz from Golden Boy or keeping him in the stable – would come down by September.
Lance Pugmire has been a full-time boxing writer for nearly 20 years, serving now as BoxingScene’s U.S. Senior Writer and assistant producer for ProBoxTV’s “BoxingScene Today.” Pugmire capped a near 20-year career at the Los Angeles Times (sports investigations, NHL/MLB beat work, law enforcement/courts and boxing/UFC) to join The Athletic, and then USA Today. Pugmire’s stint at The Times started with the first Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez fight and the Oscar De La Hoya-Floyd Mayweather Jnr then-record pay-per-view, leading through a slew of ringside assignments at major bouts, including Mayweather-Pacquiao, Mayweather-Canelo and the Canelo-Golovkin trilogy. Lance’s appreciation for boxing is rooted in his admiration and appreciation for the fighters, gladiators who have proven to be the most forthcoming and candid of all the athletes he has interviewed over a career dating to 1990. Lance was honored to be named the 2022 winner of the Boxing Writers Association of America Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence and he’s collected many BWAA writing awards in categories ranging from breaking news to deep-dive long features.
