Eddie Hearn said today that Jaron ‘Boot’ Ennis will either be fighting in a unification next in March or April 2025 or in a “big fight” at 147.
(Credit: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing)
Hearn reiterated the reason Boots, 27, didn’t accept the offer to fight WBC interim junior middleweight champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. for February 22nd because he didn’t want to “vacate” his IBF welterweight title.
That excuse doesn’t fly because Boots just made a mandatory defense against Karen Chukhadzhian on November 9th and can move up to 154 for one fight without losing his belt. So, either Hearn and Boots are either ignorant of that, or they’re being disingenuous. It’s hard to believe that Hearn wouldn’t be aware of Ennis having just made a mandatory defense.
Hearn didn’t say who the person would be in a fight for Boots (33-0, 29 KOs), but it would have to be someone not currently in the welterweight division. There are no popular fighters at 147.
U.S. fans wouldn’t consider Conor Benn a “big fight.” He’s not viewed as a serious talent. He’s more of a celebrity-type fighter, in the same boat as Chris Eubank Jr and Tommy Fury.
Ennis’ Next Move
“Boots never decided he was going to 154. ‘It might go to 154.’ I felt it was a bit of a flat performance,” said Eddie Hearn to K.O. Artist Sports about Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis. “He went away on holiday for two weeks. We started to receive some offers for him to fight [Vergil] Ortiz.
“The first offer was at 147 from Riyadh Season. In these situations with Riyadh Season, no one really makes the offer. It comes from Riyadh Season. So, they sent us an email, saying, ‘We would like to make you an offer to fight Vergil Ortiz at 147 in Riyadh; this is the money.’
“I spoke to Boots, and went back to them [the Saudis] 24 hours later. I said, ‘You might want to check. This is at 147.’ I came back a day later, ‘It’s at 154.’ I said, ‘No problem. Let me go and talk to Boots.’ I came back. We had 48 hours to make a decision. I said to Boots, ‘You got to make a decision.’ ‘Oh, when?’ ‘Now. Do you want to vacate the belt [IBF welterweight] and move to 154?’ The reason we took the [Karen] Chukhadzhian fight, which cost me a lot of money, and it was a fight that I didn’t want to do because he told me how much he wanted to fight the other champions at 147.”
No matter how much Hearn talks, it still seems 100% obvious that Boots ducked the fight with Vergil Ortiz because he would have made a lot of money and received huge publicity for his career. Beating Vergil would increase Ennis’ popularity, and he could be a PPV attraction, opening the door for other big fights at 154.
He’s talked about wanting to fight Terence Crawford in the past. Beating Vergil would help Ennis reach that goal, or at least move him a little closer.
“So, I know that already. Basically, he said to me, ‘I’d rather stay at 147,” said Hearn about Ennis. “‘If I move to 154, I’ll fight Vergil Ortiz in a heartbeat, but I don’t want to vacate the belt. I want to try and unify.’ That’s it. I know the social media swirl. ‘What?’ It’s not his [Ennis] weight class. He’s a world champion at 147.”
So there it is. Ennis ducked Vergil. Hearn can’t spin the truth because it’s in Boots’ own words. He doesn’t want to fight Ortiz Jr.
“When he makes the move, he’ll take the fight. I like the fight, because I think he wins the fight, and I like Vergil. But if you’re going to move to 154, that’s the perfect fight for us, but he’s not going to move to 154,” said Hearn.
“You can keep this interview on record and say, his next fight is going to be at 147. He’s not going to say in a month’s time, ‘Hi guys, I’m moving to 154.’ That’s not the case because if we were doing it, we’d have taken the offer and talent he fought. So, it’s 147 next.”
No one doubts that Ennis is staying at 147 because Hearn has been saying it repeatedly. It won’t surprise anyone that Boots is staying at welterweight. It would surprise people if he moved up to 154, but not if he stays at 147.
Big Fight Guarantee
“He will either unify in March or April or be in a huge fight against a huge name. When we announce the fight, you guys will say, ‘Okay, fair enough.’ A lackluster performance Chukhadzhian] will help us land a Stanionis or a Norman or a Barrios because they may think they can win now,” said Hearn.
The “huge fight” that fans would see as a big one involving Ennis at 147 would be if Ryan Garcia or Devin Haney moved up in weight and fought him. That’s about it. Crawford isn’t returning to the division. There’s no one else in the weight class that fans would view as a big fight involving Ennis.
“He [Ennis] was a bit baffled by it,” said Hearn about Boots being confused about the criticism he’s received,” said Hearn. “We’ve been talking to the Saudis for the last week or ten days. We spoke to his team a little bit, but there was no decision to make until the offer came in.
“The Saudis move very quickly. I’m closing fights on that card in three minutes when talking to someone. So, when you phone Boots, and you say, ‘We’ve had this offer. To dump your belt and move to a new weight class is quite a big decision.’ He’s like, ‘How soon do they want to know?’ ‘They probably want to know tonight, but I can problem string it out for a day or two.’
“He’s like, ‘I don’t really know. I want to unify. Can we get the unification?’ ‘Actually, I believe, yes, we can get the unification.’ He said, ‘That’s what I really want to do.’ ‘Well, you’ve got a decision,’ and the decision was, ‘I’m staying at 147.’
“Once he does that, there’s no fight at 154, and we like the fight. The reality is, Boots is a world champion, and to vacate and move up for a non-world championship fight as well. I know the fans want it, but you also have to look at your own career and your path.
“He’s really frustrated, but I feel like once we announce the next fight, you guys will go, ‘Fair play. It makes sense,’” said Hearn.
Boots should be frustrated with himself, because he’s the one that is turning down the fight with Vergil. It’s his fault. The fight offer is rumored to be $8 million for Ennis.
