Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis’ decision to stay at 147 rather than move up to 154 to face WBC interim champion Vergil Ortiz Jr is based on his hope that his promoter, Eddie Hearn, will eventually line him up for the fight for unification against the other three champions.
His Excellency Turki Alalshik said that he tried to match the fight between Ennis and Virgil Ortiz but failed. He says boots”He changed his mind.“
Hearn wouldn’t say who Ennis might fight next when he returns to the ring in the first half of 2025, but it won’t be against any of the 147 champions. are interested.
It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Boots Ennis against one of these fighters for his next defense in April or May 2025:
– Lewis Crocker
– Paddy Donovan
– Ekov Essuman
– Pat McCormack
Boots seems to be heading in the same direction as Hearn’s former fighter Demetrius Andradawho played against weak opposition in his triathlon with Matchroom. When Ennis’ contract with Hearn expires, it is predictable that it will not be renewed.
Popularity Plunge
Those aren’t fights that will interest the fans, but Hearn wouldn’t have to pay a lot to get any of those fighters to agree to fight Boots. Another story would be that Hearn tried to arrange a unification fight for Ennis at 147 because the champions would want a lot of money due to the high risk a fight of that nature would bring.
Ennis’ popularity is at an all-time low after he decided not to move Ortiz (22-0, 21 KOs) on the February 22 card.
It doesn’t look promising for Boots (33-0, 29 KOs) that Hearn will be able to land any unification fights for him at welterweight as he someone to avoid andn division. Ennis is NOT popular, lacks personality and is not up against the kind of opposition that would increase his stardom.
“He gave us his word and changed his mind at the last minute,” His Excellency Turki Alalshik told Ariel Helani’s channel, referring to Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis not wanting to move up to 154 for the Vergil Ortiz Jr. fight.
Ennis should have learned from Hearn’s failure to arrange a unification fight with WBO light heavyweight champion Brian Norman Jr. that he doesn’t have much of a chance of getting the fights he wants at 147.
Without Turkey’s participation in the fights at 147, Boots has nowhere to go as Hearn will not want to overpay the other belt holders. Turki wants big fights, and neither champion at 147 is popular enough for a matchup against Ennis to create any demand. He’s interested in Ennis challenging Vergil Ortiz Jr., but he can’t do anything if he doesn’t feel like it.
A “bad look” for boots
“Hearn said he won’t fight again in February. It’s going to have to be pushed to April or May,” Chris Mannix said on his channeltalking about ‘Boots’ Ennis’ next fight in 2025.
“It doesn’t make any sense.” Not that he would budge in a career-long fight against this junior middleweight (Vergil Jr.). He would go on to fight the former 147-pounder he was talking about anyway.
“He (Ortiz Jr.) didn’t look infallible. He defeated Serhii Bohachuk, but was knocked out twice in that fight. If you made Virgil vs. Boots, I’d favor Boots. Not by a ton, but I’d favor him early in that fight. It looks like a duck.
It is doubtful that Boots can defeat Virgil Jr. He obviously knows this himself, so he rejected the idea of moving up to 154 to challenge Virgil Jr.
The way Ennis looked against Karen Chouhadjian, Royman Villa and David Avanesian, he won’t beat Ortiz Jr.
“You want to keep your (IBF welterweight) belt. You just made the mandatory title defense against Chuhadjian. You can keep the belt, move up to 154, take the fight, and if it doesn’t work out, go down and defend your title,” Mannix said.
“I know guys, once they go up, they really don’t like going down. The boots are still young enough to potentially reduce weight. “None of this makes any sense, and overall it’s a bad look for Boots Ennis,” Mannick said.