Welterweight knockout artist Vergil Ortiz is currently hard at work for his July 24th clash against Samuel Vargas. However, he momentarily paused his preparations in order to give Boxing Insider radio a bit of his time. Together they discussed various topics such as the names he is currently eyeing for future matchups and if he expects to leave his upcoming opponent unconscious for the 16th consecutive time in his career. 

To listen in on the conversation, head over to Spotify, iTunes or BoxingInsider.com to subscribe.

Vergil Ortiz finds himself in boxing purgatory. 

With only 15 fights under his belt, the word prospect comes to mind when discussing his current standing. A high level one, but a prospect nevertheless. Yet with every single one of 15 wins coming via stoppage, including a third round pounding against former title challenger Mauricio Herrera, Ortiz would rather have the contender tag attached to his name instead. 

The path to achieving his immediate goal will be directly in front of him on July 24th, when he takes on the always durable Samuel Vargas at the Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, California. 

As of late, consistency has not been on the side of Vargas. He’s split his past four ring appearances while scoring a draw against fringe contender Mauro Godoy. With that being said however, the name Vargas does bring a level of cache to the table that Ortiz is hoping to capitalize on. With fights against former champions in Danny Garcia, Amir Khan and Luis Collazo Vargas has proven to be a viable name. 

While a win has always been the most important goal when a fighter steps in between the ropes, for Ortiz, the win is a formality. He more so finds himself focused on how he’ll look in the ring, rather than the end result. 

“I’m looking for win number 16,” said Ortiz on Boxing Insider radio. ”But I don’t care about getting him out honestly. The only thing that I care about is winning and I look good doing it. You have to look a certain way. Just because you stopped someone doesn’t mean you did good. Also just because you didn’t stop someone doesn’t mean you didn’t do good. I know he’s not someone that I will have to go catch, he’s going to come to fight. I’m going to be ready for that and everything that he brings to the table.” 

For the 22 year old Ortiz, his performances have always been bombastic inside of the ring, but 2020 has been a quiet one. The 2019 ESPN prospect of the year has built his reputation on not only eye catching knockouts, but also quick fight turn arounds. Yet with COVID-19 not appearing to slow down, Ortiz has found himself outside of the ring for seven months. Nevertheless, regardless of the lack of punches he has thrown inside of the ring, he has thrown plenty on social media. 

Over the past several months Ortiz and fellow Dallas native and unified Welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. have been going back and forth on both YouTube and their respective social media accounts. 

Spence recalled Ortiz visiting his gym as a young fighter and described the knockout artist as a “cry baby.” Those words were immediately followed up with an innocuous laugh. But to Ortiz, there was nothing to smile about. The undefeated young star not only fired back at Spence, but also claimed that a future showdown was inevitable. 

On the outside looking in, it would appear that the issues between the two fighters were anything but benign. Now however, Ortiz wants to make his words clear. 

“Basically he said a few things in an interview where it felt like a slight jab. Nothing too serious, but when somebody says something about you, you can’t let it slide. I don’t have a problem with him, I still respect him. I grew up watching him.”

Spence isn’t the only name on the mile long hit list of Ortiz in which he wishes to scratch off. The knockout artist is eyeing everyone at the top of the Welterweight division.

“I want to fight everyone man. I legitimately want to fight everyone. Danny Garcia, Shawn Porter, Keith Thurman hopefully if he is healthy. Down the line I want to fight Errol, Crawford and Ugas as well, he’s another great fighter. I just want to fight everyone. I’m looking to prove to people that I deserve to be up there with the top dogs.”

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