Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis says his April 12th welterweight unification fight against WBA champion Eimantis Stanionis is the one “I wanted.”
Boots (33-0, 29 KOs) has turned down bigger fights for more money against Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Teofimo Lopez and would do far more for his career in terms of fame & legacy.
Undisputed = Star?
Ennis is using his decision to stay at 147 and focus on becoming an undisputed champion as a foxhole to hide from taking risky fights at 154 that could upend his career. There’s no other way of seeing it. Ennis looks weak staying at 147 to beat this low-level group of belt-holders:
- Eimantas Stanionis
- Brian Norman Jr.
- Mario Barrios
Ennis believes that becoming undisputed champion at 147 will make him a star after he completes his mission, but he’s likely wrong. He’d gain a lot more by beating Vergil Ortiz Jr., Bakhram Murtazaliev, Israel Madrimov, Terence Crawford, and Serhii Bohachuk.
His stardom would shoot through the roof if he fought and beat those guys. Of course, if Boots lost to some or all of those fighters, his career would be sunk, which he could be the real reason why he’s staying put at 147, choosing to play it safe, fighting the scrub-level champions that hold belts.
“I’m going to show out; I’m going to shine. Like I said, this is what I wanted. Fighting for another belt, this is all I needed,” said Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis to YSM Sports Media about his April 12th unification fight against WBA welterweight champion Eimantas Stanionis in Atlantic City.
“My thoughts are, I’m focused on what’s in front of me on April 12th,” said Ennis when asked about Turki Al-Sheikh wanting him to fight Teofimo Lopez in October and then the winner or loser of the Devin Haney vs. Ryan Garcia rematch in February 2026.
“My main focus is collecting this belt and focusing on the task in front of me. Getting the job done and we’ll see from there. You have pay attention on what’s in front of you. Just focus on what’s in front of you, get that job done, and then move on to the next thing,” said Boots Ennis.
The Charisma Vacuum
Ennis’s charisma was nowhere during the interview. I was half-expecting him to say, ‘I can’t wait to have my fun,‘ which he repeatedly said leading into his rematch with Karen Chukhadzhian on November 9th. He sounded like a broken record and looked utterly unbelievable.
What Ennis needs is someone to do all the talking for him, like with Devin Haney has going for him. His dad, Bill, does all the talking, while Devin just stutters, talking about greatness, clean sport, and boring the fans. Boots needs a Bill-like person who can either talk for him or feed him the lines to say during interviews.
Boots looks anything like a person having “his fun” during the Karen rematch, as he was getting humiliated by him.
