Notebook: Ennis on Stanionis unification: 'I got unfinished business at 147'
'Big Baby' meltdown at Wardley presser; new challenger for Badou Jack; Fundora-Zayas update; WBC unveils Grand Prix details; Itauma set for next bout; Quick hits; Show and tell double
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Jaron “Boots” Ennis holds the IBF welterweight title but he has been extremely motivated to face another titleholder in a unification fight because, as he views things, he never won the belt he holds in the ring.
Ennis was the IBF interim titleholder but elevated to full titlist status in November 2023 when then-undisputed champion Terence Crawford was stripped by the IBF. Crawford had been ordered to fight Ennis in a mandatory fight but he was focused on a possible rematch with Errol Spence Jr. as well as a move up in weight.
Last fall, Ennis also contemplated moving up in weight but ultimately decided to stay at welterweight in order to get a unification fight that would allow him to win a title in the ring.
It is why he went through with a mandatory defense against Karen Chukhadzhian in November, even though 22 months earlier Ennis cruised to a shutout decision against the unknown opponent, who did nothing of consequence since the first fight to warrant a rematch the IBF forced on Ennis.
In the end, it was worth it for Ennis, who got his unification bout. The deal was hard to make but WBA titlist Eimantas Stanionis also badly wanted a major fight and took the bout with Ennis despite his team at PBC and TGB Promotions recommending that he walk away because they felt the money was light. Stanionis, however, insisted they finalize the match.
So, Ennis and Stanionis will meet to unify their titles, and for the vacant Ring magazine title emblematic of the No. 1 champion in a given weight class, in the main event of a Matchroom Boxing card on Saturday (DAZN, 8 p.m. ET).
Before the Chukhadzhian rematch was made, Ennis and his team at Matchroom Boxing were in the process of finalizing the paperwork for him to fight WBC interim junior middleweight titlist Vergil Ortiz Jr. on the Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol II card on Feb. 22 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. But when Ortiz promoter Golden Boy received the contract it was listed as a welterweight fight instead of at junior middleweight, where it had always been contemplated.
Ennis said there was “confusion” over the weight. The fight fell apart and he moved forward with the Chukhadzhian bout, which he could have avoided under IBF rules with a unification fight but he couldn’t finalize one.
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DAZN’s U.S. deal
If you live in the United States, you can get a 30 percent discount on an annual subscription to DAZN, which will stream a marquee fight in the Jaron “Boots” Ennis-Eimantas Stanionis welterweight title unification bout on Saturday. The offer is good through April 14. Click here or the photo if interested.