Golden Boy Promotions has secured the rights to promote a compelling fight between two of the top welterweights in boxing today.

The Southern California-based company won the purse bid for Eimantas Stanionis-Vergil Ortiz Jr. with a winning offer of $2,300,000, which topped a $2,100,100 bid from TGB Promotions, the only other entity to submit a proposal at the World Boxing Association (WBA) convention at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida.

According to the WBA rules, Stanionis will receive 75 percent, or $1,725,000, while Ortiz receives the remaining 25 percent, or $575,000. 

The matchup will pit two fighters ranked in the top 10 by The Ring; Ortiz and Stanionis are Nos. 5 and 6, respectively.

Oscar De La Hoya, who promotes Ortiz, posted a message on social media Tuesday afternoon, noting his eagerness to finalize the fight, likely taking place in February or March:

I will announce date and venue soon. Stanionis vs @VergilOrtiz @WBABoxing @GoldenBoyBoxing

— Oscar De La Hoya (@OscarDeLaHoya) December 13, 2022

In his most recent bout, Stanionis (14-0, 9 knockouts), who resides in Kaunas, Lithuania, won the WBA’s “regular” title by defeating Radzhab Butaev by split decision on April 16. Stanionis fought on the same card as Errol Spence Jr., who stopped Yordenis Ugas to unify three welterweight titles, including the WBA “super” belt recognized by The Ring as legitimate. Stanionis was the mandatory challenger to face Ugas but had his petition denied after pushing for a title consolidation fight with Spence.

Spence, who also holds the IBF and WBC belts, has been ordered to defend his WBC title against Keith Thurman, with that fight also taking place sometime during the first three months of 2023.

Ortiz (19-0, 19 KOs), who resides in Grand Prairie, Texas, last fought on August 6, stopping Michael McKinson in the ninth round. The fight was originally scheduled for March 13, but Ortiz had to withdraw from the fight after being diagnosed with Rhabdomyolysis, which forced him to be hospitalized days before the fight. 

The win over McKinson was sanctioned as a WBA world title eliminator after successful lobbying by Golden Boy and manager Rick Mirigian. 

With Golden Boy Promotions winning the purse bid, the fight will likely stream live on DAZN, which has an exclusive deal to stream GBP cards. 

Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at [email protected]

Follow @FSalazarBoxing