Jaron “Boots” Ennis didn’t want to leave any doubt over the fight he wants next – even if he initially chose to have some fun at the expense of his fans, and especially his detractors.
The unbeaten former lineal and unified welterweight champ was emphatic in his desire to next face Vergil Ortiz Jnr in a mouthwatering showdown in early 2026. Ennis held up his end with a first-round knockout of Uisma Lima to win the WBA interim 154lbs title on October 11 in his hometown of Philadelphia.
Ortiz subsequently followed suit after he defended his secondary version of the WBC title against Erickson Lubin in a second-round stoppage win Saturday at Dickies Center in Fort Worth, Texas.
Ennis made a point to travel to the show, after initially teasing his fans that his flight was canceled due to FAA-ordered reductions in the wake of the government shutdown. Once on site, he quickly expressed his desire to cut to the chase in terms of his next ring appearance.
“I'm letting everybody know – this is the fight I want next,” Ennis told DAZN’s Chris Mannix. “All the government stuff going on [with flight cancellations], I wanted to make sure I was here and let everyone know this is the fight I want.
"This fight has so much hype behind it. Even more than it did two months ago. This fight has a lot of hype behind it, and I got a good fan base. So let's go.”
Ennis re-signed with Matchroom Boxing earlier this year, primarily with the intention to secure a fight with Ortiz. Their side already agreed to the terms necessary to move forward and await Ortiz and Golden Boy, though such a decision would understandably come after Saturday’s fight.
“We had a very positive conversation in the DAZN office about six months ago,” Matchroom chairman Eddie Hearn said of the earlier steps regarding this potential matchup. “We agreed we would fight in October, they would fight in November and then we would move forward.
“We signed on our side. I don't know what's going on with their side, though Eric Gomez [Golden Boy president] told me they're still interested. So, we will see. Let’s give the American fight fans and the DAZN viewers the fight they want to see. It's the perfect matchup, two guys in their prime. Let's not marinate it. Let's just go through with it."
Those words were music to Ennis’ ears.
“He ain't said nothing but the truth,” he said of Hearn’s request. “I'm the best 154-pounder in the world, these guys can't tie my shoes.”
A fight between Ortiz and Ennis in the first quarter of 2026 would be the perfect complement to another terrific 154lbs matchup in play. As previously reported by BoxingScene, WBO titlist Xander Zayas is set to welcome WBA counterpart Abass Baraou to his birth town of San Juan, Puerto Rico for a January 31 unification bout.
