Eimantas Stanionis vs Vergil Ortiz Jr is now official for Saturday, Apr. 29, live on DAZN from College Park Center in Arlington, Tex.
Stanionis and Ortiz were expected to meet in March, with Stanionis defending his WBA secondary “world” welterweight title on the Golden Boy show, following Golden Boy winning the purse bid in December. But the fight was pushed back when Stanionis underwent an appendectomy in early January, and now we have the late April date that had been previously reported made official.
It’s a fight that stacks up a probable action affair, with Stanionis (14-0, 9 KO) and Ortiz (19-0, 19 KO) making for a really good style matchup. They’re both in their primes, both unbeaten, both have a lot to fight for here beyond just the secondary belt at stake.
If Stanionis wins, he becomes a more attractive opponent for Errol Spence Jr back with PBC, or he gets solidified as a true titleholder if Spence moves up, perhaps. For Ortiz, a win here could set him up with that same opportunity if Spence moves up, but also looking at a potential big fight later this year with Terence Crawford either way. Golden Boy have made noise about setting Crawford up with two fights, one against Alexis Rocha and then Ortiz.
“I am beyond happy, knowing that we’re finally here, fighting for a world title,” said Ortiz. “The work that we’ve done inside and outside of the ring and the obstacles we’ve overcome has led to this moment. Stanionis is a great fighter with massive power and I know we are going to put on a good show for everyone.”
“Vergil asked for this fight, so here we are,” said Stanionis. “I feel like this is going to be a special fight. We have mutual respect as competitors but make no mistake it’s going to be an absolute war.”
Undercard fights haven’t been announced yet.