Vergil Ortiz Jr. is considering shifting as much as 160 to problem Erislandy Lara for his WBA middleweight title subsequent fairly than defend his WBC interim 154-lb belt towards Xander Zayas on February twenty second.
Boxing insider Fernando Sabatini reviews that Vergil Jr’s crew doesn’t want dealing with the 22-year-old Zayas subsequent. The higher choice can be to combat the extra established fighter Lara (31-3-3, 19 KOs), who’s coming off a formidable ninth-round stoppage win over former two-division world champion Danny Garcia on September 14th.
Lara Over Zayas
Vergil Jr. (22-0, 21 KOs) nonetheless wants an opponent for the celebrated Riyadh Season card on February twenty second after the Eddie Hearn-promoted fighter Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis selected to not combat him on that card.
Lara arguably ought to have a 35-1 file fairly than 31-3 as a result of his three attracts and the defeats towards Canelo Alvarez and Paul Williams have been controversial. The one true loss on Lara’s resume was a slender 12-round break up choice towards a primary Jarrett Hurd on April 7, 2018.
The unbeaten, extremely ranked #1 WBO and #4 WBC Xander Zayas (20-0, 12 KOs) was reportedly requested, and he mentioned he accepted in “one minute.”
Combating Zayas can be a no-win match for Vergil Jr. as a result of the Puerto Rican fighter is younger, has zero expertise, is unknown to followers, has little or no energy, and has a defensive fashion much like Shakur Stevenson.
It’s not the kind of combating fashion the place Vergil Jr. can shine as a result of he must chase Zayas across the ring, coping with frequent clinches, and it’s a combat that may seemingly be booed if it have been held within the U.S. Furthermore, if Vergil destroys Zayas, he’ll obtain little credit score as a result of he’d have crushed a novice with no expertise towards world-class opposition.
Eyeing The WBA Title
“I’m knowledgeable that one thought they’ve for Vergil Ortiz is that he faces [Erislandy] Lara at 160 for the WBA [middleweight title] that the Cuban has. I used to be additionally advised {that a} [fight] with Xander Zayas is feasible, though it’s not what his crew prefers. Nothing is official but,” mentioned Fernando Sabatini on X in regards to the plans for Vergil Ortiz Jr. for his subsequent combat.
If the combat towards Lara didn’t occur, Erickson ‘The Hammer’ Lubin can be a wonderful different. The 29-year-old Lubin (26-2, 18 KOs) is ranked #3 IBF and #3 WBA, well-known to boxing followers, and coming off a 12-round unanimous choice of Jesus Ramos on September 30, 2023.
