Shakur Stevenson wants to see Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis move up to 154 to fight Vergil Ortiz Jr. for his WBC interim junior middleweight title.
Stevenson feels that Ennis (32-0, 29 KOs) will have more than enough talent to defeat the 26-year-old Vergil (22-0, 21 KOs), who is coming off a controversial 12-round majority decision win over Serhii. Bohachuk on August 10 in Las Vegas. Vergil swept over and was countered by Bohachuk all night.
Boots Ennis, 27, has yet to say anything about moving up to junior middleweight, but he may have to because it doesn’t look like he’ll ever get the opportunity to unify the 147-lb division. Ennis’ promoter, Eddie Hearn, encountered obstacles when trying to negotiate fights with the other champions at welterweight. They want too much money.
Ennis is training for his title defense against Karen Chukhadzhian (24-2, 13 KOs) in their rematch on November 9 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The IBF ordered the fight, so Ennis had no choice but to face Chukhadzhian again. Ennis wants to make a statement this time by knocking him out.
“I would love to see Boots go up and fight Vergil Ortiz now. I think Boots is the truth. Yes, but Boots is the truth,” Shakur Stevenson said GBHTV about wanting Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis to move up to 154 to challenge WBC interim junior middleweight champion Vergil Ortiz Jr.
Ennis should move up to 154 to broaden his horizons, as it doesn’t look like he’ll ever get a unification fight at 147. If he stays in the weight class, he will still have trouble trying to get big fights.
“Vergil is rough though,” coach Greg Hackett said. “I think Boots will have his way, but Vergil is a big boy.”
“Can Vergil take that (stuff) that Boots dishes out? Can he take it?” Shakur said.
“That’s the question. That MF hit me with a body shot today, and he had 18-ounces, and we didn’t even spar,” Hackett said of Boots.
“He spared me, and he stuck me out of the ring. I said, ‘What kind of stitch is that? It comes at 100 miles per hour. OK, I’ll come to my defense,'” Shakur said of Boots Ennis,
