Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis is one of the most exciting unbeaten world champions in boxing today but is only now coming to prominence.
What a run it has been so far and he returns this weekend, as always with his father and coach ‘Bozy’ Ennis by his side:
Speaking to the folks at Stomping Ground the father of ‘Boots’ said:
“What a pleasure it is to have you, Boy Yes Sir, on the channel. Please, thank you, my friend, for giving me a little bit of your time. We’re here in Philly, right? It’s my first time here, and I can see Lincoln Field. You’ve got the 76ers, the Eagles, right? A lot of history.
I know you guys chose boxing, but I want you to tell me a little bit about your favorite sports teams here in Philly and some history behind them.
“Well, you’re talking to the wrong guy now, because I’m strictly a boxing guy. I don’t follow basketball, football, baseball, or any of that. I’m strictly boxing. That’s it.”
So, you prefer watching people get punched in the face, or maybe punching people in the face yourself?
“Yeah, that’s something I used to do, you know what I mean? That’s something I love. I used to train in the gym by myself. I’d be there alone, just me.”
I was waiting for you to give me a little bit of basketball history. I know speaking to Boots, he likes a bit of basketball, but you’re strictly boxing. Strictly.
“Strictly boxing. Nothing else but boxing. I mean, I’ve played basketball before with my son, just messing around, but I don’t have to run home to catch the basketball game or the football game. I don’t have to do any of that. I’m strictly boxing. Strictly getting to work in the gym.”
I want to talk about the fight with Karen Chukhadzhian. Obviously, the first time Boots came out victorious, and it was one of the few fights he didn’t get a stoppage in. Something he wants to put right. Talk me through how you saw the first fight between those two.
“The first fight, I saw Boots expecting Karen to fight, but I could tell that in Boots’ mind, he was trying to get the knockout. He wasn’t cutting off the ring like he usually does. He was getting a little frustrated. You know, with all the other guys he’s fought, they’ve come to fight. They’ve tried to win. But Karen wasn’t trying to win. He wasn’t trying to fight.”
Do you think Karen will come with a different plan this Saturday night?
“It all depends, you know what I mean? I don’t know, but I think he’s probably going to fight the same way. I wish he would fight differently. If he does, it’s going to be a different situation for him. He’ll get stopped.”
Talk me through how preparing for a rematch is different for you and what the game plan is. This is the first rematch of Boots’ career, so what are you cooking up for the game plan?
“Nothing’s really different. Boots is going to do what he knows how to do: cut the ring off more. That’s all. Nothing else changes. He was getting frustrated in the first fight because he couldn’t make Karen fight. He needs to cut the ring off more and stop being frustrated. The main thing is just cutting the ring off better.”
So, you’re saying Boots has the power, and when he doesn’t force the knockout, that’s when the opponents go to sleep?
“Exactly. When he doesn’t try too hard, that’s when the knockout comes naturally.”
Have you experienced this type of power in anyone else during your time?
“Oh, yeah. I’ve had a few pros with power. Demetrius Hopkins, Anthony Thompson, both of my sons, and a few others. Guys like Cory Evans, and there’s this young upcoming guy, T.T. Smalls, who’s got power too. A lot of guys.”
You must have some sore shoulders from holding pads for all these guys.
“Oh, yeah. That’s why I gotta see a specialist. My shoulders are getting beat up from those pads. I need to get an MRI.”
Boots has a 90% knockout ratio, which is higher than guys like Vladimir Klitschko and just slightly less than the great middleweight puncher Gennady Golovkin. It’s a brilliant selling point. Do you think people focus too much on his power instead of his actual boxing ability?
“No, they know Boots can do both. The way I train my fighters, I teach them how to box on the outside and fight on the inside. You’ve got to be able to do both, because sometimes you won’t be able to box. You’ll have to fight inside, and Boots can do both.”
What sort of performance are we going to see from Boots this time? A spectacular one?
“Absolutely. When I tell him to have fun, you’re going to see a different performance. He’ll have fun in there and do his thing.”
Is unification next? Does it have to be unifications next?
“That’s what I want. I want Boots to clean out 147 and then move up to 154 and do the same thing.”
What’s your fight preference when it comes to unifications?
“Any one of them. We’ve talked about fighting Barrios, and he was even ready to fight us first, but then something happened with his girlfriend or something. We were also looking at fighting Stanionis. There are a lot of guys out there, but we’re just trying to get the right fight.”
Do you feel like you’re in a better situation now that you’re with Matchroom as opposed to PBC?
“Oh, yeah, absolutely. Matchroom’s a great place to be. They treat us well. Eddie Hearn is a good person, and they’ve been treating us right. We’re happy with them.”
Eddie offered Brian Norman Jr. a fight, right?
“Yes, he did. Eddie offered him $750,000 to fight Boots, but Brian turned it down. Then he offered him $1.5 million, and Brian turned that down too. So, what does that tell you? He didn’t want to fight Boots.”
Do you think Brian Norman Jr. is avoiding the fight with Boots?
“Yeah, he’s avoiding it. You don’t turn down that kind of money if you want to fight. He doesn’t want to fight Boots.”
At what point do you just move on from the Brian Norman Jr. fight and look at other options?
“We’re not even worrying about that right now. We’re just focused on whoever’s next. We’re going to keep doing what we’re doing, and if it’s Barrios next, we’ll take that. But we’re not focused on Brian Norman.”
I know Boots wants to chase greatness at welterweight and beyond. Is there a point where you just draw a line under the fight with Brian Norman Jr.?
“We’re not even thinking about Brian Norman right now. Whoever’s next in line is who we’re focused on. We’re just keeping it moving.”
You guys are heading to watch a fight next week? Is Barrios defending his title?
“Barrios? I don’t know where he’s fighting, but we’re not traveling to watch other people’s fights. We don’t do that. When Boots steps in the ring, it’s a whole different situation for these guys. They fight different when they face Boots.”
One name that always comes up when discussing Boots is Terence Crawford. What’s your response to people asking about a potential fight with Terence?
“I don’t even talk about Terence anymore. He’s already made his decision. He wants to fight Canelo, and if he doesn’t, he’s moving on. He’s said it a million times. He’s not fighting Boots. We don’t focus on that. We respect Terence, but we’re focused on our path.”
Do you think Terence might retire if he doesn’t land the Canelo fight?
“I don’t know, but Terence has made a lot of money now. If he’s going to fight Canelo, he’s looking for that big payday.”
We mention it because it’s a fight everyone wants to see, though.
“I would love that fight, too. Terence is a great fighter. We wanted the Spence fight, too. We want to fight the best, and we’ll beat the best.”
What about Oscar De La Hoya’s comments saying that Crawford would beat Boots comfortably?
“They can say what they want. When the time comes, they’ll see. If that fight ever happens, it’ll be a different situation. We don’t care what people say now. We’ll let the fight speak for itself.”
Would you be interested in a fight with Ryan Garcia?
“Absolutely. We’d take that fight in a heartbeat. That’s a good fight, but it probably won’t last long.”
Well, I think it says a lot about Boots, the amount of brilliant fights you can throw at him. I really appreciate your time. It’s been a pleasure. Good luck to you and the team!
“Thank you, my friend. I appreciate you.”
Wow, well, there it is.
What a chat with the father and trainer to one of the best fighters in boxing who is not known outside of boxing just yet, Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis — who returns this Saturday night to the ring in Philadelphia.
