Ennis rival doubles down on unification clash amid mutual respect

The Sunderland native came through his first IBF light-middleweight defence against Caoimhín Agyarko in Jeddah last month.

Unified WBA and WBO champion Ennis was among the first to reach out afterwards, writing on X: "Congrats [...] see you soon!"

Speaking to Boxing Scene, Kelly - who thanked his rival and promised to "get this fight sorted" - is ready to honour his bargain.

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"I'm healing up nicely," he said. "I'm getting the stitches out on Monday, and [...] I should be healed up in eight weeks' time.

"'Boots' is the one I want next. That's a huge fight. It will be great to put a performance on in America [...] against the best."

Ennis earned his stripes with a brutal victory over Xander Zayas in June to tee up a possible unification clash versus Kelly.

The two were reportedly contracted for a fight prior to the latter earning his IBF crown against Bakhram Murtazaliev in January.

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