After two delays, Eimantas Stanionis and Vergil Ortiz Jr. will square off in the ring for the WBA welterweight belt. Stanionis and Ortiz were originally supposed to fight on March 18, but the fight was pushed back a month after the Lithuanian boxer had to undergo an emergency appendectomy. We were then supposed to see this fight happen on April 29, but Ortiz was forced to call it off this time after suffering rhabdomyolysis during his training. That led to a longer delay, yet we finally appear set to have this long-awaited title showdown.
Eimantas Stanionis (14-0-1 with nine knockouts) will defend his WBA welterweight title against fellow unbeaten Vergil Ortiz Jr. (19-0 with 19 knockouts) on Saturday, July 8, 2023. Even though Stanionis is the current title holder, he is a sizeable underdog by the boxing betting odds in this bout. The main event will get underway at 7 p.m. ET with ring walks expected at 10 p.m. ET.
When: Saturday, July 8, 2023
Where: AT&T Center, San Antonio, Texas
Why: WBA Welterweight Title
Eimantas Stanionis vs Vergil Ortiz Jr. Betting Odds
Eimantas Stanionis +295
Vergil Ortiz Jr. -405
Due to his power, Vergil Ortiz Jr has been installed as a considerable favorite over champion Eimantas Stanionis per the boxing gambling odds. If you are unfamiliar with betting on boxing, a $405 bet on Ortiz would return a $100 profit if he were to win. Meanwhile, a $100 bet on Stanionis as an underdog would return a $295 profit if he were to retain his title.
Eimantas Stanionis vs Vergil Ortiz Jr. Preview
Seven-time amateur national champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. has had the spotlight on him for a long time. Diehard boxing fans have watched him develop from a promising amateur boxer into an elite professional fighter, and this could be his coming out party to the sporting world at large. A knockout of Eimantas Stanioinis would make him 20-0 with all 20 of those wins coming by knockout, and he would claim his first major title too.
Ortiz is just 25 years old. He finished all of his first 11 opponents inside of three rounds, and no one has been able to last longer than nine rounds against him. That has led to Ortiz winning the WBA Gold and WBO International welterweight titles as he bided his time waiting for a major title opportunity. His last opponent was Michael McKinson back in August, and McKinson was able to stand toe-to-toe with Ortiz longer than any other fighter yet. Still, McKinson was finished before the ninth round was over as Ortiz’s power overwhelmed his opponent.
Eimantas Stanionis does not have the same power as Ortiz. Stanionis has only scored a knockout in five of his 15 fights, and he comes into this fight at a height and reach disadvantage. While Ortiz is 5’10 with a 71-inch reach, Stanionis is just 5’8 with a 68-inch reach. That will put the champion on the back foot for much of this bout.
In his last three fights, Stanionis has been solid, but not overwhelming. He scored a 117-111, 116-112, 115-113 unanimous decision victory over Thomas Dulorme in April 2021, yet his fight with former world champion Luis Collazo was stopped in the fourth round after an accidental head clash left Collazo unable to continue due to a nasty cut over his eye. Still, Stanionis was able to compete for the title, and he won a split decision against Radzhab Butaev that should have been a unanimous decision last April.
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