Jaron Ennis realizes that the welterweight champions aren’t about to give him a title shot anytime soon.

For all his talent and potential, the 22-year-old Ennis is far too much of a high-risk, low-reward proposition for such stars as Manny Pacquiao, Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jr. It might even take Ennis becoming a mandatory challenger for a 147-pound championship for him to get his first title shot.

The Philadelphia native is the WBO’s 12th-ranked challenger for Crawford’s crown. Ennis also is the IBF’s 14th-rated contender for Spence’s belt.

Though he obviously will fight a lower-profile opponent once the COVID-19 pandemic ends, Ennis is confident he would defeat Crawford or Spence if they fought next.

Ennis (25-0, 23 KOs) acknowledged Crawford is “definitely a great fighter,” but he told BoxingScene.com that “whatever he can do, I can do better.”

The 32-year-old Crawford (36-0, 27 KOs) is commonly considered at least one of the top three boxers, pound-for-pound, in the sport. The Omaha, Nebraska, native would be a steep step up in competition for Ennis, but the confident contender is certain he is ready to defeat the three-division champion.

“It’s gonna be me in there just doing my thing, because I’m fighting somebody that is sharp like me,” Ennis said. “So, it’s gonna be me out-thinking him and me putting my combinations together, doing my thing and coming out with that win.”

Ennis would rather challenge Crawford than Spence (26-0, 21 KOs) because he feels the public’s perception of the 30-year-old Spence has changed since he suffered injuries in a one-car accident October 10 in Dallas. The IBF/WBC champion is training again, but Spence hasn’t fought since surviving a scary crash that left him with cuts to his face and body, as well dental damage.

“I don’t feel like nobody would get the credit they deserve if they beat Errol Spence,” Ennis said. “They’ll be like, ‘You was supposed to do that because he was in that car accident.’ But I feel it would go the same way with Spence as with Crawford. I would out-think him. I’m smart, being this young. I can out-think anybody. I can out-think ‘em, out-smart ‘em, and I have tricks. I’ve got something they don’t have. When you have tricks, you can beat anybody. With Crawford and Errol Spence, I feel like I have more tricks than them, and I can out-think ‘em.”

Ennis, an uncommon combination of intelligence, power and speed, has won 15 straight bouts by knockout or technical knockout. His handlers have had difficulty finding ranked contenders willing to face Ennis for reasonable purses, but he has benefitted from exposure on Showtime, which has televised each of his past five fights.

In his most recent action, Ennis knocked down Kazakhstan’s Bakhtiyar Eyubov (14-2-1, 12 KOs, 1 NC) twice in the first round. Ennis became the first fighter to stop Eyubov inside the distance when referee Earl Brown halted their scheduled 10-rounder in the fourth round January 10 at Ocean Resort Casino’s Ovation Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.