Ennis vs. Ortiz: Boxing Match Set for 2026, Hearn Announces

Jaron “Boots” Ennis could face Vergil Ortiz in the first quarter of 2026, as long as he secures victory in his junior middleweight debut this Saturday, according to promoter Eddie Hearn. Ennis (34-0, 30 KOs), 28 years old, will face Uisma Lima (14-1, 10 KOs) in his first fight at 154 pounds at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia. After his technical knockout victory in the sixth round over Eimantas Stanionis in April, Ennis seeks to deliver a great performance against Lima, from Angola and based in Portugal, in front of his local fans. The winner on Saturday will advance to a chance at the WBA junior middleweight world title, currently held by Abass Barou (17-1, 9 KOs), from Germany. Hearn has in mind an even bigger showdown for “Boots” against Ortiz (23-0, 21 KOs), who will defend the WBC interim junior middleweight title against Erickson Lubin on November 8.

We want the biggest fights after Saturday, and for me the one that makes the most sense and has been negotiated is Vergil Ortiz.

Eddie Hearn

Hearn expects Ennis to perform better at junior middleweight and states that the Philadelphia boxer is willing to face any of the world champions in 2026. Ortiz, from Texas, and WBC junior middleweight world champion Sebastian Fundora (23-1-1, 15 KOs), from California, hold the number 1 and 2 spots respectively in the 154-pound rankings. Hearn believes Ennis could even compete at super middleweight.

Hearn also mentioned that the goal is to achieve a world title opportunity at 154 pounds, whether against Xander Zayas, Bakhram Murtazaliev, Sebastian Fundora, Abass Baraou, or Vergil Ortiz. Hearn believes Ennis will be a different boxer at 154 pounds and could even compete at 168 pounds. Hearn believes Ennis is the future pound-for-pound number one in the sport and the natural successor to Terence Crawford. Hearn concluded that what was seen at 147 pounds was a diminished boxer, but still phenomenal.