Will Saudi Money Lure Crawford or Ennis to Face Ortiz Jr.?

Promoter Oscar De La Hoya said today he wants WBC interim junior middleweight champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. will fight Terence Crawford, Sebastian Fundora or Jaron 'Boots' Ennis on February 22 in Riyadh.

Oscar's wish list for Vergil Jr

De La Hoya's first choice 'Boots' Ennis (33-0, 29 KOs), but he's unsure if Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn still wants to fight Vergil Jr. (22-0, 21 KOs) after the lackluster performance Jaron had in his rematch against Karen Chukhadzhian on November 9.

'It's one of those three. It's one of those three,” De La Hoya told DAZN about wanting a big name for Vergil Ortiz Jr.

Oscar wants a big name for Vergil Jr

Ennis was exposed in that fight, and it would be a mistake for Hearn to turn him on to a killer like Vergil Ortiz Jr.

That fight showed that Boots is vulnerable and can be thrown away. Hearn may not want to risk putting him with Vergil Jr. and let him ruin all the hard work he put into trying to make him a star.

WBA 154-lb champion Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs) is still in a holding pattern, waiting to see if Canelo Alvarez will throw him a bone by giving him a shot at his unified titles at 168. That fight isn't likely to happen.

Vergil, 26, still lacks the popularity to entice fighters like Crawford, WBC and WBO champion Fundora to want to fight him. It's too risky for them, and it would be a lot harder to take on a powerful young guy like Ortiz Jr. He is currently in the 'Who Needs Him' club.

In other words, Ortiz Jr. is more trouble than he's worth without the Saudis stepping in to entice Fundora, Crawford or Boots Ennis to tangle with him.

If His Excellency Turki Alalshikh can help lure one of those big names, Vergil Jr. an excellent opponent on February 22. However, without Turki's help, De La Hoya will have to look elsewhere before Vergil faces former WBC 154-pound interim champion Serhii Bohachuk in a rematch.

Vergil defeated Bohachuk (24-2, 23 KOs) by a controversial 12-round majority decision on August 10 in a fight that many fans saw Serhii winning.