Boots Ennis vs. Vergil Ortiz Jr is a fight worth fighting (and waiting) for

What, will the line stretch out to the crack of doom? Are we fated to go on hearing about Jaron 'Boots' Ennis vs. Vergil Ortiz Jr. - pro and contra - to the end of the world and beyond?

There is a sense of bafflement among boxing fans regarding why this fight has not been locked in already. Remember, these two undefeated American leading lights agreed to a fight last year live on air in the aftermath of Ortiz's chilling KO of Erickson Lubin back in November.

"Do you have a yes for me?" a clearly hyped Ortiz asked Ennis at the end of a spirited verbal back and forth in the ring in Fort Worth, live on DAZN.

"Yes," Ennis said without delay.

And yet with February 2026 now just around the corner, the contractual fine print for this fight has yet to be officially signed off. It may take a while yet for that to happen too given that Ortiz Jr. has recently gone down the legal route and is requesting the termination of his promotional contract with Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions.

The good news? The trainers of both fighters - Robert Garcia and Derek 'Bozy' Ennis – both think the fight will happen. And happen this year.

The two trainers shook hands - seemingly verbally agreeing that their respective prize-fighters will meet in the ring – backstage in the days before Raymond Muratalla's IBF lightweight title defence against Andy Cruz on Saturday.

Alas 'Bozy' and Garcia are not in charge of fight negotiations, but their mutual enthusiasm for what most people of sane mind see as the best fight that can be made in American boxing right now is heartening.

This fight seems to have been talked about forever, despite the fact that Boots is 28 and Ortiz is 27. It has been in the works for a long time, or at least that’s what it feels like. Both fighters clearly want it. They’re not ducking. They’re not dodging. They’re not afraid. Just two athletes – in their respective primes - with greatness on their mind.

Ortiz’s manager and promoter are clearly not on the same page, but that will be resolved one way or another and when it is hopefully the people that matter can get the fight over the line.

I have sympathy for De La Hoya, who is being portrayed as the contemptible cad in all this in some quarters. Oscar has never said he doesn’t want this fight, and in recent online clips talking about purse splits just seems to be wanting the best financial deal for his man. That said, without knowing much about the particulars, I’m a little confused at why Ortiz’s promoter doesn’t leave it to his manager to negotiate Ortiz’s purse?  

It’s also may be worth remembering that by the time Oscar was Ortiz’s age he had already fought the likes of Julio Cesar Chavez, Pernell Whitaker, Felix Trinidad and Shane Mosley and was a four-division world champion. Time waits for no man, in life or in boxing, and Ortiz’s athletic peak won’t last forever.  

In an ideal world, I'd love Oscar to simply reach out with a charming billet doux – or for Ortiz to do likewise to his estranged promoter – so that they can all work together to make a super fight.

You don’t build stars by hiding them from each other. Ask Sugar Ray Leonard. Ask Tommy Hearns. You build stars by letting them collide.

As boxing fans, we are not asking for the impossible. We are asking for two men in the same division, in the same era, with the same ambitions, to have a fight. Before one or the other moves up. Before one or the other gets injured. Before the moment passes and everyone pretends it was never realistic in the first place.

As it stands it feels like Ortiz is caught between a rock and a hard place, which is a strange vantage point for such a ferocious fighter who is unbeaten and has ambitions of world domination and leaving a genuine legacy in the sport.

Realistically, as things stand, these two are not going to fight each other next. As fans we can live with that if – and it’s a big if – they each have another fight and then they lock in and box each other in the second half of 2026. Ennis will almost certainly be out again in March, and no later that April. The vexation would set in if we don’t see Ortiz in the ring again anytime soon due to what is happening outside of it. That would be a real shame for him and for us fans.  

It’s never easy when ego’s, big cheques and relationships are all at play, but I feel for both fighters here and their respective teams. If they fought, the winner’s earning potential would go into orbit. The loser’s financials – certainly in the short term – would take a hit but then there will always be a risk for anyone daring to be great. This is sport. This is why we love boxing.

Messrs Ortiz, Ennis, Hearn and De La Hoya. I think I speak for all boxing fans when I say I hope you can all find a way to make this work. To paraphrase that iconic line from the late, great Mills Lane “Let's just get it on!”

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