Eimantas Stanionis defeated Radzhab Butaev via split decision to win a form of a world title, but beyond that it was supposed to secure a fight against Errol Spence Jr.
Stanionis stepped aside to allow for Errol Spence and Terence Crawford to reach a fight, but that fight fell apart. Now the WBA has ordered a mandatory title defense between Vergil Ortiz Jr., and Stanionis. The two sides have until January 16th, 2023 to come to terms.
“I hope so," said Stanionis when speaking to Hans Themistode of BoxingScene.com about if a Vergil Ortiz bout will be next. "But you never know in boxing.”
The fight would bring a lot of clarity in the welterweight division, one that has been stuck in neutral while the top guys are not fighting each other.
“I like his fighting style. He’s tough guy, he’s strong guy, I can take nothing away from him. He's a really good fighter. Stylistically, it’s going to be a big, big war. But that's what excites me and that's what wakes me up in the morning to do extra work, to train harder.”
