It was out of his control, but Vergil Ortiz Jr. wasn’t really on board with the original plan for his next opponent.

There was a point where Israil Madrimov (10-1-1, 7 KOs) was scheduled for two potentially grueling fights in a span of just two months. The Ring’s No. 2-rated junior middleweight and former WBA titlist was previously scheduled to face Serhii Bohachuk (24-2, 23 KOs) last Dec. 21 on the Oleksandr Usyk-Tyson Fury II undercard at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

With a win, Madrimov would then move on to the mouthwatering showdown against Ortiz (22-0, 21 KOs) that graces this weekend’s DAZN Pay-Per-View show from ANB Arena in Riyadh.

An ailment suffered by Madrimov forced him out of the Bohachuk fight, a development which many considered to be a lucky break. Among them is the man he will face this weekend.

“I’m glad the fight didn’t happen,” Ortiz admitted to The Ring. “I don’t know how likely this fight would have been to happen if that one did go through.

“I think this fight was solidified when that one was canceled.”

Ortiz-Madrimov takes place in supporting capacity to the Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol RING/undisputed light heavyweight championship rematch.

The concern at the time of Madrimov’s double booking was the aggressive first step in that equation. The 30-year-old Uzbek was fresh off a taxing defeat to Terence Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs). Naturally, many wondered if he could physically recover in time to face Ortiz just nine weeks later.

There was also the distinct possibility that Madrimov could have lost that fight.

Ortiz had a personal taste of the damage Bohachuk can produce in the ring. The unbeaten Texan was forced to overcome two knockdowns to claim a majority decision and the interim WBC junior middleweight title in their Aug. 10 Fight of the Year contender in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The impact of their competitive clash landed the pair one spot apart in The Ring’s top junior middleweight rankings—Ortiz is No. 5, while Bohachuk is No. 6.

Their fierce battle also marked the first time that Ortiz was forced to go to the scorecards or even beyond the ninth round. It was his third fight of the year, a trend he’d like to continue in 2025. That said, his body will have likely benefitted from the gap of more than six months between that night and a very competitive matchup against Madrimov.

Similarly, Madrimov’s time out of the ring is just one week longer. His narrow defeat to Crawford took place just seven days prior to Ortiz-Bohachuk.

The decision to have Madrimov next face Ortiz was surprising at the time, given his scheduled bout against Bohachuk. As far as Ortiz was concerned, however, he was just one of many names from which to choose for this assignment.

“It was a really good situation,” recalled Ortiz. “We had a buffet of opponents to choose from. I think that the fight wasn’t even about, ‘Oh, we want to fight Madrimov.’ We actually said yes to all four names. The other fights just didn’t happen. We just kept saying, ‘Yeah’ until one stuck.

“I’m just happy that it’s happening.”