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Vergil Ortiz Jr. could be heading to middleweight for his next bout as he looks to make his 2026 debut.

A fight between Ortiz and super-welterweight champion Jaron Ennis looks further away than ever, but Ennis has no doubt they will eventually meet.

“For sure,” Ennis told YSM Sports Media when asked if he’ll fight Ortiz at some point. “We definitely can make it happen. If he’s going to 160, let him go ahead and do his thing at 160. I’ll see him there. Right now, my mind is on belts.”

Ennis moved up to super-welterweight and defeated Xander Zayas for the WBA and WBO titles, while Ortiz is now considering a move to middleweight.

“What’s that? His fourth weight class, no belt?” Ennis added. “I came to your division and became a two-division, unified champion.”

Where does Isaac Cruz rank among the best at 140 lbs? 👀👑

With a potential May showdown against David Benavidez on the horizon, Jai Opetaia doesn’t want to sit around waiting and plans to stay active in the meantime.

“I don’t want to wait until May for my next fight,” Opetaia said on The Ring’s Mr. Verzace Podcast. “That’s ages away. I’d love to get one more fight in this year, and then one more early next year, and then we can fight in May. I’d definitely like to get a fight in. I’m not going to wait until May sitting around. It doesn’t make sense to me.”

Opetaia’s desire to stay active comes after he and Benavidez publicly agreed to target a showdown next May.

After stopping Noel Mikaelian, Opetaia called ringsider Benavidez into the ring, where the pair showed mutual respect and agreed to target a May showdown at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. For that to happen, Benavidez must first beat Cieslak, while Opetaia would need to win his next fight if he opts to stay active.

“They told me he was in the crowd, so I tried to find him and call him in,” Opetaia said. “I wanted him to say that. I just want to concrete the fight. It was good to have him in there [and] good to hear his words. I’m just hoping we get that fight over the line.”

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If Canelo Alvarez’s fight against WBC super-middleweight champion Christian Mbilli goes the full 12-round distance, it will mark the eighth consecutive time he has done so. Alvarez last scored a stoppage win against Caleb Plant in November 2021.

Speaking on DAZN’s “Face Off” preview show, Alvarez dismissed any suggestion that he is no longer at his best.

“No, I’m very good,” Alvarez replied when asked if there was any lingering doubt that he is not as good as he once was. “I’m going to be very [good]. I’m going to be ready. I can hurt him and stop him. He couldn’t beat me if I was 50 years old or 60. He can’t beat me in this life. It’s just a different level, and he is going to find out. He needs 10 of him to beat me. We’re gonna see.

“He’s a champion. That’s why I chose him – I want to fight champions. I don’t know if he has the ability to handle the situation, but we’ll see.”

Following Isaac Cruz’s knockout of Nestor Bravo, his advisor Sean Gibbons discussed what could be next for ‘Pitbull.’

“He’s ferocious, but humble – a man of the people. The key is to see what happens with Dalton Smith-Puello, see what happens with Ryan, see what happens with Gervonta [Davis]… we’ve got to sit down and figure out what’s next, but it seems to me January or February is best,” Gibbons told BoxingScene. “It’s business. You have to find the right time, the right money.”

With Canelo Alvarez nearing retirement and Benavidez’s future beyond his December fight yet to be determined, Cruz could be positioned to take on a greater share of the spotlight in Mexican boxing.

“'Pitbull’s the face of Mexican boxing – there’s Canelo, and then there’s ‘Pitbull,’” Gibbons said. “I love [unified 130lb champion Emanuel] Navarrete, I love [lightweight champion William] Zepeda, but you don’t see this type of stuff when they fight. There’s only one ‘Pitbull.’

“He is the face of Mexican boxing after Canelo is done.”

Despite being stripped of the IBF cruiserweight title, Jai Opetaia remains determined to unify the division’s belts.

“I feel like it’s gonna happen, honestly,” Opetaia said on the latest episode of the Mr. Verzace Podcast, hosted by Ring CEO Rick Reeno. “I feel like undisputed, it’s gonna come. I feel like me and [David] Benavidez will fight. He’s got most of the belts at the moment. I still believe in it. I still believe in the undisputed dream. … I’d love to hold all the belts at once. That’s what I’m chasing.”

Opetaia also emphasised that his pursuit of unification did not begin with Benavidez.

“I’m chasing the belts,” Opetaia continued. “Whether Benavidez comes up or not, I was chasing [Gilberto Ramirez] before that, and before [Ramirez] I was chasing [Chris] Billam-Smith. I’ve been chasing these unification fights for so long. Now, Benavidez is a big name. Now, it’s his turn.”

Mexico’s ‘Pitbull’ Isaac Cruz knocked out Puerto Rico’s Nestor Bravo in the sixth round to impressively retain his WBC interim 140-pound belt at Pechanga Arena in San Diego.

“Hey, Ryan, I’m here. My next fight is for you. Come on, Ryan,” Cruz (29-3-2, 19 KOs) said after dominating Bravo in a messy affair.

Bravo resorted to holding, shoving and low blows, which earned him two point deductions during the fight.

“Mom said there’d be days like this,” referee Thomas Taylor, who deserved every penny of what he got paid Saturday, was heard saying between Rounds 4 and 5.

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Can Néstor Bravo derail ‘Pitbull’ Cruz’s route from interim WBC champ to 140lb gold?

Isaac "Pitbull" Cruz will face Nestor Bravo in the Premier Boxing Champions "DAZN Fight Night" main event. Cruz of Mexico City (28-3-2, 18 KOs) will defend his interim WBC super-lightweight belt against Bravo of Arecibo, Puerto Rico (24-1, 17 KOs), who will be making his first championship appearance.

The winner of tonight’s fight will become the mandatory challenger for the full WBC super-lightweight champion Dalton Smith.

Garcia demolished Benn in under 5 – but did the scales beat him first? Tris Dixon joins The Opening Bell to discuss the stoppage, the weigh-in debate, and what's next for both fighters. 🥊

GARCIA DESTROYS BENN | WAS THE WEIGHT CUT TO BLAME? Ryan Garcia made emphatically short work of Conor Benn in Las Vegas...