Describing the tone of discussions as “positive,” representatives for Golden Boy Promotions and unbeaten junior middleweight Vergil Ortiz Jnr are crafting the framework for the fighter’s fall return to the ring.
Following an encouraging update by Golden Boy President Eric Gomez at a Thursday news conference in Southern California, Ortiz’s manager, Rick Mirigian, said Gomez’s characterization of the talks is accurate.
Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya will ultimately decide how the negotiations fare as the days tick toward a scheduled summer federal-court arbitration hearing in Las Vegas.
The 28-year-old Ortiz, 24-0 (22 KOs), hasn’t fought since his November 8 second-round knockout of Erickson Lubin in Ortiz’s home state of Texas.
With unbeaten former unified welterweight champion Jaron “Boots” Ennis watching from ringside, and the pair ultimately facing off in the ring, the time for a showdown between the talented duo in their prime seemed at hand.
Instead, Ortiz and Mirigian complained they received a lowball offer from Golden Boy while De La Hoya countered Mirigian was seeking an exit and negotiating with other promoters as opposing lawsuits were filed and Ennis moved on to next week’s unified 154-lbs title shot at unified champion Xander Zayas at Barclays Center.
While De La Hoya did not immediately return a Friday phone message left by BoxingScene, Gomez said this at Thursday’s news conference for unified minimumweight champion Oscar Collazo’s DAZN main event on Saturday night:
“We’re hoping to work something out.”
Mirigian said it’s his understanding Golden Boy is targeting a main event for Ortiz, likely to follow the promotion’s separate involvement in a first WBC welterweight title defense by new champion Ryan Garcia in September.
Mirigian expressed hope in the process, reminding of his fighter’s longtime admiration and loyalty for De La Hoya.
“Eric Gomez, I feel, has been sincere with his efforts – as well as we have on our side, as we put a lot of time in,” Mirigian said Friday. “This will come down to what the Boss (Oscar) thinks to close it out. The framework is there to make something happen now.
“A relationship built over many years may bend, but not often break when the sides look at the good things that took place, as well.”
Mirigian said he would assume possible opponents could include fellow Texan and former undisputed 154-lbs champion Jermell Charlo, WBC junior-middleweight champion Sebastian Fundora or the winner of the July 25 Errol Spence Jnr-Tim Tszyu fight.
