Vergil Ortiz Jr. says he wants to fight either WBC and WBO junior middleweight champion Sebastian Fundora or former undisputed 154-lb champion Jermell Charlo next. He thinks either those fights would be “Massive.”
Pipe Dreams?
Those are pipe dreams for Ortiz Jr. because neither has any chance of happening soon if ever. The soon-to-be 35-year-old Jermell Charlo (35-2-1, 19 KOs) hasn’t fought in two years since losing to then-undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez by a one-sided 12-round unanimous decision.
Jermell’s purse for the fight was reported to be in the neighborhood of $20 million, which might explain why he hasn’t fought since. Whatever popularity that Jermell once had, it’s gone due to his inactivity and the way he fought against Canelo.
Vergil Ortiz Jr. likely wouldn’t be a big enough fight to lure Jermell back into the ring unless Turki Alalshikh wants to chip in to make this fight viable. I don’t think he would. That performance from Jermell against Canelo was so poor that it wouldn’t be worthwhile. Charlo isn’t going to come back to fight Vergil Jr. as the B-side on an undercard.
Sesbastian Fundora (21-1-1, 13 KOs) is defending his WBC and WBO 154-lb belts against Chordale Booker on March 22nd. He says he wants Errol Spence Jr or Terrence Crawford after that. He has NOT mentioned wanting to face Ortiz Jr.
Reality Check
Vergil Ortiz Jr.’s only fight available is against IBF junior middleweight champion Bakhram Murtazaliev on June 28th at Alcatraz. His dad, Ortiz Sr., ruled him out for the fight with Murtzaliev (23-0, 17 KOs), saying his hands still need to heal and he might need surgery.
The question is, if Vergil Jr’s hands are healthy enough for him to fight Charlo or Fundora, why aren’t they for him to face Murtazaliev?
“Who do I want next? A good fight would be me and [Jermell] Charlo. We would like [Sebastian] Fundora,” said Vergil Ortiz Jr. to ESNEWS, when asked who he wants to fight next. “If the Charlo fight happens, I would like that at Cowboys [Stadium in Arlington, Texas]. The one at 154. At the Cowboys Stadium would be a massive fight, a good Texas fight.”
