Aztec Drills 48.6m of 133.1 gpt AgEq from Surface at Tombstone Project, Arizona and Expands Drill Program by 3,500m

• Drillhole TR25-26 intersected 48.6 meters averaging 133.1 gpt AgEq (58.93 gpt Ag and 1.06 gpt Au) from surface

• TR25-24 intersected 152.4m averaging 19.81 gpt Ag and 0.236 gpt Au from surface

• Drillhole TR25-25 intersected five mineralized zones totaling 121.6 meters along its 252.3 meter length, including 48.6 meters averaging 6.79 gpt Ag and 0.106 gpt Au

• Drilling program has been expanded by 3,500 meters as results continue to demonstrate the oxidized Ag-Au mineralization has broad continuity to depth, to the east and west

• 42 holes have now been drilled in the expanded 2025-2026 drill program with 12 RC holes pending release as the campaign continues

• Core hole TC25-04 continues to be drilled to depth, targeting the southern NSAMT (natural source audio-frequency magneto-telluric) target

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESS Newswire / January 15, 2026 / Aztec Minerals Corp. (TSXV:AZT)(OTCQB:AZZTF) ("Aztec" or the "Company") announces it has received the results from an additional nine RC drill holes from its reverse circulation ("RC") portion of the 2025 drilling program at the Tombstone Property in Southeastern Arizona. The 2025-2026 drilling program has now completed 42 RC drill holes and one core hole. The results from 9 RC holes drilled in the historic Contention Mine Area of the Contention Target are announced herein.

Highlights from the RC drilling reported from the western, central and northern sides of the main Contention Target include:

• RC drill hole TR25-26 was collared as a northerly offset to TR25-17 in the center of the northern Contention mine area:

  • Intersected 48.6 meters of 133.1 gpt AgEq (58.93 gpt Ag, 1.06 gpt Au) from surface

• TR25-24 was collared in the central portion of the Contention area and was a long, continuous intersection of oxidized mineralization:

  • 152.4 meters averaging 36.32 gpt AgEq (0.236 gpt Au, 19.81 gpt Ag), from the collar including 10.6 meters of 212.35 gpt AgEq (81.41 gpt Ag, 1.871 gpt Au) and 4.6 meters of 176.57 gpt AgEq (92.8 gpt Ag, 1.197 gpt Au)

• Drill hole TR25-25 was collared on the western side of the northern main Contention area and tested easterly and to depth in the target area

  • Five zones of Ag-Au mineralization were intersected totaling 121.6 m in its 252.3 meter length including 48.6 m of 14.19 gpt AgEq (6.79 gpt Ag, 0.106 gpt Au)

  • Over 48% of the drillhole's length was composed of mineralized intersections.

Eight of the nine RC drillholes intersected Ag-Au mineralization and expanded the target area extent to the west, east and to depth. The majority of the intercepts show broad continuity of mineralization. All reported intersection lengths are apparent widths of mineralization, not true widths, which can range at the property from 30% to 100% of apparent widths.

Figure 1. Cross section of RC drill hole TR25-26 showing Ag and Au assay results.

Drilling Program Expansion

The Company also announced that the Tombstone Property JV Management Committee met recently and approved an expansion of the drill program from 8,500 meters to 12,000 meters. The expanded program comprises of 9,500 meters of RC and a minimum of 2,500 meters of core drilling.

Core Drilling Update

The core drilling portion of the program in 2026 continues to advance the drill hole TC25-04 targeting the large, southern AMT target. Currently it is at 444.5 m depth with the top of the AMT target estimated to be a further 80 m below. Sporadic intersections of hydrothermal breccias and "B-type" porphyry veinlets have been observed. The RC precollar portion of 91 meters from this drill hole have been shipped to the analytical laboratory for geochemical analysis.

The core rig is continuing to test to depth the previously identified southern AMT target under the Bisbee formation in the thick Paleozoic carbonate formations below. Aztec has previously identified several large, strong, conductive bodies, underneath the historic gold-silver district through NSAMT (natural-source audio-frequency magneto-telluric surveys) anomalies¹.

Tombstone 2025-2026 Drilling Plan Completed and Pending

Figure 2. Plan map showing drill hole collars and traces from the 2025-2026 drill campaign at the Tombstone Property, southeastern Arizona.

The continued, successful drilling of the Contention pit area was supported by Aztec's 3D geologic and underground working model that was constructed to assist in targeting potential expansion of the Contention system. The overall Contention system has yet to be defined and marks the confluence of other mineralized zones including the Westside Anticline.

Detailed Drillhole Summary Highlights (see Table 1 & 2 below):

• Hole TR25-26 - Collared as a northerly offset to TR25-17 in the center of the northern Contention mine area. It intersected 48.6 meters of 133.1 gpt AgEq (58.93 gpt Ag, 1.06 gpt Au) from surface. It also intersected at depth 10.6 m (130.7 - 141.3 m) with 8.34 gpt AgEq (4.06 gpt Ag, 0.061 gpt Au). The drillhole leaves the mineralization open to depth and to the east.

View drill sections here:

Link to section view hole TR25-19/20
Link to section view hole TR25-21
Link to section view holes TR25-22/23/24
Link to section view hole TR25-25
Link to section view hole TR25-26

Table 1A: Drill Results Currently Reported

Note 1: Gold and Silver equivalents are calculated using a 70:1 silver:gold ratio for holes reported since November 2025, 90:1 in 2025 prior to November, 80:1 2023 and 2024, and a 70:1 silver:gold ratio in 2021.

The 42 RC drill holes in the current program completed to date primarily are part of a "fan grid pattern" being drilled in the Contention area since 2020. Most of the RC drill holes are oriented to test for extensions on the western, eastern borders, the southern extensions, and underneath the north-trending main Contention target zone which hosts the historic underground and open pit Contention mine. One RC drill hole tested a projected dike and fissure vein intersection under mineralized outcrops and historic shafts. The drill program has continued to identify to depth and horizontally pervasively oxidized and hematite-rich, silicified hydrothermal breccias composed of quartz feldspar porphyry dike and Bisbee Group clastic sedimentary fragments, typical of the material mined historically at the Contention Mine.

Additional mineralization types continued to be outlined by the current drilling including: manganese replacements in limestone beds and skarns, quartz veinlets, oxidized sulfide relicts as disseminations, silicification of altered hornfels, quartz feldspar porphyries and hydrothermal breccias. For the 2025 program, TR25-09 is the deepest RC hole drilled, it has an inclination of -60 degrees and was drilled to a depth of 274.4m (237.7 m vertical) remaining in mineralized and oxidized rocks most of its length.

The drilling results showed that the Contention area mineralization is still open at depth and the mineralized volume is expanding.

2025-2026 RC and Core Drill Program

The RC drilling program is targeting shallow zones associated with surface exploration and 3D geological modelling, prospective for wide oxide gold-silver mineralization, and drilling pre-collars for the deeper CRD targets. The drill program has completed 2 RC drill holes since the start of 2026, focusing on testing both the Contention Main and Southern Extension areas as step out targets and Westside Area first pass targets, with results from the first 29 holes now announced. Initial assay results continue to validate the oxide gold-silver geological setting as outlined in Aztec's geological exploration model. One core hole (TC25-03) has been successfully completed to target depth in the northern portion of the project and another (TC25-04) is currently being advanced (444.5 m) to test the southern AMT target and it is anticipated to have to advance another 80 m to reach the top of the AMT target.

The primary objectives of the 2025 drilling program were to: Expand the known mineralization horizontally to the west, north and south, and down dip beyond the holes drilled by Aztec in 2020-24 at the Contention Pit with step outs to enlarge the shallow, broad, bulk tonnage gold-silver mineralization discovered there; test by core drilling the initial deep CRD targets and also, to explore with first pass drilling new targets identified in the Westside area.

Table 1B: Tombstone 2025 Previously Reported Results