Boxing
Boxing has long known Ennis can be a superstar - He must prove it against Zayas
Zayas vs. Ennis: Watch only on DAZN PPV - Tonight
If achievements were judged in the gym, then Jaron Ennis would be boxing’s best fighter, and nobody would come close.
This weekend, against Xander Zayas for super-welterweight glory, the Philadelphia star can prove once and for all that the hype that has followed him around for many years is more than justified.
For a long time, many in boxing have known that Jaron Ennis is a potential superstar, but despite his u beaten record, world title reign at welterweight, and a couple of high-profile victories, the breakout party for Ennis has never really got going.
Cameron Dunkin, arguably boxing’s greatest ever talent spotter, worked with Ennis in the fighter’s early days when he was blitzing his way through opposition on club shows in his home city.
Neglecting amateur glory to turn professional as a teenager, Ennis looked impressive early on, and there was no doubting just how much ability he possessed as he looked to be the latest product of a region that had contributed massively to American boxing’s success following on from Philly legends such as Joe Frazier and Bernard Hopkins.
'Ennis is going all the way to the top'
Dunkin, who discovered fighters like Terence Crawford, Diego Corrales, and Kelly Pavlik, couldn’t hide his glee when discussing Ennis’ ceiling, but after losing a battle with cancer in 2024, the respected manager will not get to see the possible crowing moment of Ennis’ career despite promising it would always come.
“Jaron Ennis is going all the way to the top and he’s going to do it pretty soon too,” said Dunkin when speaking with this writer back in 2019.
“At 21, I don’t think I’ve seen anybody look as good as Jaron does at that age and I knew what I was signing when I first saw him as an amateur.
“He was doing things then, setting traps and producing counters that you don’t even see from guys with 30 and 40 fights on their record. This is the one who can be a really big star.”
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As well as Dunkin, Sam Jones, the British manager currently guiding Jack Catterall and Daniel Dubois, couldn't contain his excitement when he got to watch Ennis spar when taking Catterall to Philadelphia top trainer with Bozy Ennis, the father of Jaron.
Jones has been around many gyms, encountered many elite sparring sessions featuring the likes of Sergey Kovalev and Gennadiy Golvkin, but after witnessing Ennis in the flesh he was quick to point out just how good he was.
Eddie Hearn is another. The Matchroom boss has a big footprint on the American boxing scene and has promoted some of the sport’s biggest names over there including Canelo Alvarez, Shakur Stevenson, and Teofimo Lopez.
When asked by DAZN News if Ennis is the best American fighter he has ever signed, Hearn couldn’t help himself in fawning over the 29-year-old.
“I think talent wise, he’s the best fighter I’ve ever signed. It’s very difficult because you’ve got Shakur who we’ve worked with. Bam Rodriguez, a phenomenal fighter on the pound-for-pound list.
So many young guys we've brought through like Ray Ford and Diego Pacheco, but for me, Ennis is the full fighting package. Some guys fight defensively. Some guys just want a war. This guy has it all. The only fighter you can really liken him to is Terence Crawford. Someone who is just so versatile that he can do it all.”
These qualified men, who've breathed boxing 24/7 for so long surely can’t be wrong when assessing the so-called brilliance possessed by Ennis.
It appears the boxing community has been well aware of just how good Boots is for many years. On Saturday night, the entire world could also be about to find out.
Zayas vs. Ennis - watch only on DAZN
Xander Zayas defends his WBO and WBA super welterweight titles against Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis on Saturday, June 27, exclusively live on DAZN. Buy as a one-off PPV or included, along with Joshua vs. Prenga (July 25) and Canelo vs. M'billi (Sept 12) PPVs, with a DAZN Ultimate Tier subscription.
