Trainer Stephen Edwards says he rates Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis as the best at 154 and 160 right now. He believes he’s got “too much speed and skills” for the belt-holders in those divisions.
Stephen cautions that Ennis (35-0, 31 KOs) still needs to prove that he’s the best, but he feels he would be the favorite against everybody. Now, it’s up to ‘Boots’ and his promoter, Eddie Hearn, if they want to focus on the 154-lb division or go up to 160, hoping to land the big fish, Terence Crawford, before he retires.
Edwards Crowns Ennis the 154 King
“I think he’s the best guy at 154,” said coach Stephen Edwards to YSM Sports Media about Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis. “He was struggling to make 147. Seven more pounds of carbs, energy, muscles, and fluids.”
There are only Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Sebastian Fundora that Ennis would have to worry about at 154. He’s got too much speed and skills for the champions, Xander Zayas and Bakhram Murtazaliev. Those guys are the weakest link. Bakhram would have to be seen as better than Zayas, given his power and amateur pedigree.
“I just felt he looked good at 154. Obviously, you can’t get credit for something you haven’t done, but I think he would be the favorite for everybody at 154 if you know what you’re looking at,” said Edwards about ‘Boots’ Ennis.
“He would,” said Edwards when told that Ennis would be the favorite over everybody at 160. “If you look at the three champions at 160, he would be the favorite over everybody at 160. Janibek would be the closest in terms of odds.”
Why Ennis Should Skip 154 Entirely
Edwards is right. ‘Boots’ would be the favorite over everybody at middleweight if he moved up to 160 now instead of spending time at 154, focusing on capturing world titles. If Ennis has the ambition to step out of his comfort zone to accomplish something more important, he’d move up to 160 now.
I wouldn’t say that the champions at middleweight are more popular than these 154-pounders:
- Vergil Ortiz Jr.
- Sebastian Fundora
- Keith Thurman
- Erickson Lubin
- Xander Zayas
Chasing Crawford Before It’s Too Late
If Ennis moved up to 160 now, he’d increase his chances of getting a fight against Terence Crawford before he retires. ‘Boots’ can’t afford to wait until he captures two or three titles at 154, like his promoter Eddie Hearn wants him to do for him to build the fight against Crawford.
It’ll take too long for Ennis to win those titles, and Crawford is already 38 now. He’s already turned down a fight against David Benavidez, and you can understand why. He knows he wouldn’t win.
In a year or two, Crawford would likely feel the same way about ‘Boot’s, and he won’t want to mess up his chances of being remembered as one of the all-time greats. He’s got this obsession with being on the Mount Rushmore of boxing, which he can’t do if he fights Ennis in a year or more.
Jeepers Isaac has been covering boxing since 2020, bringing readers sharp ringside insights and timely analysis on the sport’s biggest moments.