By: Hans Themistode
Egidijus Kavaliauskas is desperate to get another crack at a world title. So much so in fact, that he’s willing to face one of the biggest punchers in the welterweight division.
As first reported by Steve Kim of The 3 Knockdown Rule, Kavaliauskas is set to take on Vergil Ortiz Jr. on August 14th at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas. The bout will be broadcast on DAZN.
As previously mentioned, Kavaliauskas (22-1-1, 18 KOs) is hoping to jump back into the championship mix. In his first shot for a world title against Terence Crawford in late 2019, Kavaliauskas gave a good account for himself. In the early going, the prohibited underdog tagged the pound for pound star with several hard shots and even appeared to drop Crawford after an awkward scrum in the early rounds.
While the Lithuanian may have enjoyed moments of success, Crawford immediately put an end to it as he found his rhythm. Kavaliauskas would eventually hit the deck in the seventh round before ultimately getting stopped in the ninth. Since then, Kavaliauskas has bounced back. He manhandled and stopped fringe contender Mikael Zewski in September of 2020. At the moment, he’s currently ranked number five in the WBO but figures to make a significant jump in the rankings should he hand Ortiz, the number one ranked fighter in the sanctioning body, his first pro loss.
After pocketing the biggest win of his career against Maurice Hooker, stopping him in the seventh round in March of 2021, Ortiz (17-0, 17 KOs) has made it no secret that he wants to compete for a world title. On several occasions, the 23-year-old has admitted that although he isn’t sure if he’s ready to face Crawford, he’s still willing to step inside the ring with him. Should Ortiz pull off the win and continue his knockout streak, he could be made mandatory for Crawford’s WBO title in 2022.
