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IBF welterweight champion Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis (33-0, 29 KOs) takes on WBA champion Imantas Stanionis (15-0, 9 KOs) in a two-fight unification clash at 147 on April 12 from Boardwalk Arena on DAZN in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Can Ennis turn it on?
This is the unification bout that Ennis, 27, has been eyeing since his promotion to the IBF welterweight title in November 2023. Boots has looked average in his four fights against Karen Chukadchian x 2, so he needs an impressive showing in this fight. , David Avanesian and Royman Villa.
You could say this is Boots’ first challenge, but after his last fight with Chukhadchian, it’s hard to imagine a more brutal matchup with him. In their rematch on Nov. 9 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Karen made a mini-Arthur Beterbiev look like he was taking punishment from the Ukrainian fighter.
If Stanyonnis is a better fighter than Karen, Jaron could win this fight on April 12th and make Eddie Hearn regret signing him.
Enis’s decision to turn down a big payday in a fight that changed his start against WBC interim junior middleweight champion Virgil Ortiz Jr. on next month’s card in Riyadh makes February 22 even more critical.
Boxing fans think that Boots is a fighter who lacks ambition and confidence after being trained twice by Chukadchian.
Stanionis is coming off a 12-round unanimous decision over Gabriel Maistre on May 4 last year. Ennis looked better in the fight than he had in his last four contests.
Listen: “This is #1 of #2.”
“This is simply a brilliant fight,” said announcer Eddie Hearn. “When we signed Boots, I told him we’d offer him a merger, so it’s great to get this over the line for Jaron, and I know he’s got the biggest fight of his career ahead of him. He’s going to shine brighter than ever. Imantas is a talented fighter, and this is without a doubt #1 and #2 in the division.”
Stanionis is seen as #2 in the division, but WBO champion Brian Norman Jr. and WBC champion Mario Barrios could be better. None of these guys have taken on good opponents in the division to say who is #1 or #2.
Ennis decided he wanted to stay at 147 until the bitter end to try and become the undisputed champion, no matter how long it took. Some argue that this is foolish and is slowing down Boots’ career, but the alternatives could be worse. If Ennis moves to 154, he will have to fight with the killers in that class, who are better at hitting and defending than him.
