Vergil Ortiz Jr cleared, will face Eimantas Stanionis on July 8

Vergil Ortiz Jr has been medically cleared to return to action, and his fight with Eimantas Stanionis is now rescheduled for July 8, according to ESPN.com’s Mike Coppinger.

It’s the second time the fight has had to be rescheduled. Stanionis, the WBA’s secondary welterweight titlist, underwent an emergency appendectomy in January, which scrapped an original March 18 date. Then Ortiz, his mandatory challenger, came down with rhabdomyolysis for a second time, and the April 29 date was also off.

But promoter Oscar De La Hoya, whose Golden Boy Promotions won the purse bid for the fight in December, said recently that Ortiz would be back in July, and now we have the new date, for the same fight that a lot of diehard fans really want to see, because it’s simply a terrific matchup.

Ortiz (19-0, 19 KO) now knows the rhabdomyolysis is caused by long COVID, according to the ESPN report. He says he’s had COVID three times, and that due to the recent medical attention received, he’s feeling better than he has in years.

Stanionis (14-0, 9 KO) is going to be a tough opponent even if Vergil feels the best he ever has, so it’s good that he’ll be going into the fight feeling strong and confident; it’s the toughest matchup of his career to date, and also it’s just good to hear he’ll be back in the ring at all.