Jaron Ennis-Josh Kelly unification nearing completion for February 27
Nov 10, 2026 • 1:11 PM ET
Zachariah Delgado / Matchroom BoxingNegotiations to finalize a three-belt junior middleweight unification bout between Jaron “Boots” Ennis and Josh Kelly are nearing conclusion, with a news conference featuring the pair possibly taking place this week.
BoxingScene has learned the bout could be staged in New York, Philadelphia or Atlanta on DAZN, with February 27 the targeted date.
Veteran boxing journalist Dan Rafael first reported the date on his Fight Freaks Unite! Substack.
Philadelphia’s two-division champion Ennis, 36-0 (32 KOs), captured the WBO and WBA belts with a seventh-round TKO of former champion Xander Zayas in June.
England’s Kelly, 19-1-1 (9 KOs), claimed the IBF belt in January, knocking down then-champion Bakhram Murtazaliev en route to a majority decision victory. Kelly, 32, then successfully defended his title in July in Saudi Arabia.
With both men promoted by Matchroom Boxing’s Eddie Hearn, the Ennis-Kelly winner is being pointed toward an undisputed showdown with WBC 154lbs champion Sebastian Fundora, who successfully defended his belt for the fourth time in October with a 12th-round knockout of Ermal Hadribeaj.
Hearn is in Los Angeles this week to promote Saturday’s Diego Pacheco-Darius Fulghum super middleweight bout at Dignity Health Sports Park in nearby Carson, California. Should the Ennis-Kelly negotiations be finalized, a news conference for that bout could be staged during his visit.
- Eddie Hearn
- Josh Kelly
- Jaron Ennis
- Bakhram Murtazaliev
- Sebastian Fundora
- Diego Pacheco
- Xander Zayas
- Darius Fulghum
- Matchroom Boxing
- Ermal Hadribeaj
Lance Pugmire has been a full-time boxing writer for nearly 20 years, serving now as BoxingScene’s U.S. Senior Writer and assistant producer for ProBoxTV’s “BoxingScene Today.” Pugmire capped a near 20-year career at the Los Angeles Times (sports investigations, NHL/MLB beat work, law enforcement/courts and boxing/UFC) to join The Athletic, and then USA Today. Pugmire’s stint at The Times started with the first Israel Vazquez-Rafael Marquez fight and the Oscar De La Hoya-Floyd Mayweather Jnr then-record pay-per-view, leading through a slew of ringside assignments at major bouts, including Mayweather-Pacquiao, Mayweather-Canelo and the Canelo-Golovkin trilogy. Lance’s appreciation for boxing is rooted in his admiration and appreciation for the fighters, gladiators who have proven to be the most forthcoming and candid of all the athletes he has interviewed over a career dating to 1990. Lance was honored to be named the 2022 winner of the Boxing Writers Association of America Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence and he’s collected many BWAA writing awards in categories ranging from breaking news to deep-dive long features.
