Vergil Ortiz Jr. And Erickson Lubin Finalizing Deal For November 8th Bout On DAZN

Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Erickson Lubin are in the works for November 8th at the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.

Lubin (27-2, 19 KOs) has chosen not to challenge IBF junior middleweight champion Bakhram Murtazaliev for his title after the sanctioning body ordered negotiations to begin last month on July 21st.

Risk and Reward for Lubin

Golden Boy has reportedly offered Erickson twice the purse he would have received as a challenge to Bakrham’s IBF belt to face Vergil Ortiz Jr. (23-0, 21 KOs) for his WBC interim 154-lb title.

While it’s not for the full WBC title, it gives Lubin a bigger payday and a better chance of winning in the eyes of many fans than what he would have if he fought Murtazaliev (23-0, 17 KOs). It’s understandable why Lubin chose to go in the opposite direction from Murtazaliev. He’s looking unbeatable now, and his power would have been an enormous problem for Lubin to deal with.

Vergil Jr. is a big puncher, but he’s not on the level of Bakhram. That would have been a grueling fight for Lubin along the same lines as his battle against Sebastian Fundora in 2022, which he lost by a ninth-round knockout. Lubin has since won his last three fights to claw his way back into the world title picture.

Lubin’s 3-fight Winning Streak Opponents

Ardreal Holmes Jr.
Jesus Ramos Jr.
Luis Arias

Boxing insider Mike Coppinger reports that Ortiz-Lubin are finalizing their fight for November 8th for DAZN.

Ortiz Jr.’s Recent Performance Issues

Vergil Jr. has looked beatable in his recent fights against Israil Madrimov and Serhii Bohachuk. He was given the nod over Bohachuk by a 12-round majority decision on August 10, 2024. Ortiz was down twice in that fight, once in round one and again in round eight.

Both times, he protested, but the replays showed that Bohachuk had dropped him. Fans believed overwhelmingly that Bohachuk had done enough to deserve the win.

It’s going to be a tough fight for Lubin, who took a lot of punishment in his ninth-round stoppage loss to Sebastian Fundora three years ago. Lubin’s face was unrecognizable at the end, as it was severely swollen.