Ortiz said a 50-50 split was offered for a fight in neutral territory, adding that Zayas rejected the offer outright and did not try to negotiate further terms. The altercation stems from Zayas’ earlier suggestion that Ortiz wanted full control of the deal, something Ortiz rejected in detail.
“I wanted everything my way,” Ortiz said on X. “He publicly turned down a 50/50 offer in neutral territory, saying it wasn’t a real offer, and never renegotiated.”
Vergil Jr. pointed to the lack of any follow-up discussions as the clearest sign that the fight has stalled on the other side, saying there was no counteroffer or private effort to keep negotiations active once the initial proposal was rejected.
The timing of Vergil’s complaints is suspicious given how the board has shifted. While Ortiz vented on social media, the rest of the division moved into an entirely different gear.
“He claims he wanted the fight and did everything to make the fight happen and yet we never heard a peep about it,” Vergil Jr. said. said about Xander. “Not something anyone does when they really want to fight.”
The dispute reflects the wider divide between Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank, with both fighters aligned with opposing promotional outfits. Those situations often depend on continued negotiation beyond a first offer, especially when location and control become early bottlenecks.
Zayas previously questioned whether the offer was genuine and indicated a preference for different terms, including location. Ortiz’s account instead focuses on what followed, arguing that the absence of further talks ultimately ended the possibility of the fight.
Xander looked straight at Jaron “Boots” Ennis. Matchroom and Top Rank actually made it official just a few days ago: Zayas will defend his WBA and WBO titles against Ennis on June 27 at the Barclays Center.
That Zayas-Ennis fight is a massive unification/defense that completely sidelines Ortiz. If Zayas wins, he is the unified king and a superstar. If Ennis wins, he is a two-division champion. Either way, Ortiz isn’t even in the conversation for that particular winner right now.
Vergil’s comments place responsibility for that halt on Zayas’ side, presenting the breakdown as a break in engagement rather than a disagreement over terms.
