Ortiz-Crawford? Early Scouting Report This Saturday

Vergil Ortiz Jr. is in a position this Saturday to make his name a well-known one for current WBO champion Terence Crawford in more ways than one.

The undefeated Ortiz (16-0, 16 KOs) is in action at the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, to close out the latest Golden Boy Promotions fight card on the streaming service DAZN against former junior welterweight titleholder Maurice Hooker (27-1-3, 18 KOs). Ortiz Jr. speaking with Jake Donovan of Boxingscene.com noted that Hooker, a stablemate of Crawford, will probably have a vested interest in what’s does in the ring.

“I definitely feel like they’re gonna be studying me,” Ortiz Jr. said to BoxingScene.com of Hooker’s team potentially scouting him for a bigger fight down the road. “It gives them a chance to look at me.”

“The thing is, there’s always something about watching a fight and thinking I’m gonna do this and this, until you’re in the ring and it’s time to do it. A lot of that stuff doesn’t work, you just have to get in the ring and figure it out.”

I can’t wait to fight

— Vergil Ortiz Jr. (@VergilOrtiz) March 16, 2021

That “bigger fight down the road” would be a shot at Crawford’s 147-pound title. Ortiz Jr. taking on Hooker is for the WBO regional title (Whatever the International version is), but more importantly, he’s currently ranked number two in the WBO. While this wasn’t named an outright title eliminator, safe assumption to anyone who’s following the rankings would be shocked that if Ortiz Jr. is victorious, he will leapfrog Shawn Porter for that number one spot.

This was also something that we had thrown out as a possibility when we had on Gayle Lynn Falkenthal of CommunityDigitalNews.com on an episode of the Big Fight Weekend Podcast.

“Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford and Vergil Ortz…Bring. It. On,” Falkenthal said to on the podcast. “That’s a great fight that nobody knows they need. Crawford can’t find a dance partner. Ortiz, Jr. has not been challenged to date. He’s laid waste to everybody.

Combine that with the photo taken with Ortiz Jr. promoter Oscar De La Hoya, matchmaker Eric Gomez and Crawford’s promoter Bob Arum with Arum sitting what looks to be a salon chair back in late January, and that may just be a possibility. Just know Ortiz Jr. is willing to wait and find out.

” We just saw Bob Arum sitting down with Oscar de la Hoya and Eric Gomez. So…who knows? We just have to wait and see,” Ortiz Jr. stated.

De La Hoya, Eric Gomez & Bob Arum on business lunch? pic.twitter.com/b6o5H80mBh

— #BeterbievDeines (@BatmanBoxing) January 29, 2021