The Ring's No. 2-ranked junior middleweight has been sidelined since stopping Erickson Lubin in two rounds on November 8 in Fort Worth, Texas.

All signs pointed toward Ortiz (24-0, 22 KOs) taking on Jaron Ennis for his next bout, but negotiations became complicated once Ortiz sued career-long promoter Golden Boy for breach of contract on January 16. Several months of legal proceedings finally ceased on July 17 when both sides reached a settlement.

Ortiz's longtime manager Rick Mirigian, who drew the ire of Oscar De La Hoya throughout the dispute, shared a positive development surrounding Ortiz's next fight.

"Vergil Ortiz Jr. will fight in November, 100 percent," Mirigian told The Ring. "There are names at 154 and 160 pounds, and titles being considered. Oscar wants to do it big in either Texas or Las Vegas.

"We just have to see if the first option at 154 pounds will step up, as they have been the priority for four weeks now. I've been fortunate in my time as a manager that my fighters say either 'yes' or 'no' in seconds when a fight is on the table. Here, we are waiting around and watching paint dry. But expect an announcement in the next two weeks, no matter what."

After dealing with rhabdomyolysis in 2023, which made campaigning as a welterweight a tough task, Ortiz made his junior middleweight debut in January 2024 and has beaten the likes of Lubin, Israil Madrimov, Serhii Bohachuk, Thomas Dulorme and Fredrick Lawson along the way.

Ortiz is also the WBC interim titleholder at 154 pounds. Still, it appears that Ortiz is ready and willing to move to the middleweight division if the right fight presents itself, since the junior middleweight champions have plans that don't include the 28-year-old knockout artist from Grand Prairie, Texas.

Ennis, who picked up the WBA and WBO 154-pound titles in June by stopping Xander Zayas, prefers a title unification fight against IBF champion Josh Kelly, while WBC champion Sebastian Fundora is expected to face mandatory challenger Ermal Hadribeaj.

Ortiz recently said he's knocking on the door for a big fight and that he's simply waiting for the opportunity.