Vergil Ortiz Jr. was supposed to fight Samuel Vargas this weekend at The Forum in Los Angeles, but after that clash was cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak, the 22-year-old knockout artist is instead fantasizing about his promising future.
Ortiz (15-0, 15 KOs) envisions being ready to take on one of the sport’s pound for pound greats in current IBF and WBC welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. (26-0, 21 KOs) no later than 2022.
“I think I’ll be ready for Errol Spence in less than two years, honestly. I don’t want to wait too long to where he’s already on his way out. I want to say that I beat Errol in his prime, and hopefully, we get it on in the Cowboys Stadium,” Ortiz Jr. said in an interview with DAZN.
The heavy-handed Ortiz and slick southpaw Spence are both born, raised and based in the Lone Star State. A showdown in Dallas would be most appropriate.
Last year, Spence was sitting ringside supporting Ortiz during his homecoming fight and win over Antonio Orozco.
Both fighters grew up together in the same gym, and Ortiz said that he envisions a super fight with his friend once he’s a bit more seasoned and fighting at 154 pounds.
“I’m actually pretty happy that he showed up [for the fight]. It means a lot to me. He used to be my teammate, and he’s a great fighter,” Ortiz told BoxingScene.com after his win over Orozco last August. “I want to be a four-division world champion. I just want to be remembered.”
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist and member of the Boxing Writers Assn. of America since 2011. He has written for the likes of the LA Times, Guardian, USA Today, Philadelphia Inquirer, Men’s Health and NFL.com and currently does TV commentary for combat sports programming that airs on Fox Sports and hosts his own radio show in Los Angeles. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan or via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com.
