Ahead of his rematch with Karen Chukhadzhian on Saturday, Jaron Ennis said his goal was to be undisputed at 147 pounds.
Philadelphia’s Ennis, 27, returns to the ring four months after retiring David Avanesyan in five rounds. This time, Ennis comes up against 28-year-old Chukhadzhian of Ukraine to defend his IBF welterweight title at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia – a familiar foe he outpointed in January last year.
Ennis anticipates a great show in Philadelphia against a familiar opponent.
“It was a blessing to be able to fight at the Wells Fargo Center,” said Ennis during an interview with Fight Hub TV. “It was the first fight there in a while and it was historic. I'm glad to be able to do it. I'm glad to do it again. I feel like this one is gonna be even bigger and better.”
Ennis has struggled to land a shot at fighting some of the best 147 pounders such as Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jnr who have moved to campaign at 154. The duo joins a junior middleweight division made up of so many talented fighters such as Sebastian Fundora (WBC and WBO titlist), Bakhram Murtazaliev (WBA), Vergil Ortiz Jnr, Tim Tszyu, and Serhii Bohachuk among others.
Commenting on the pool of talent at 154, Ennis, 32-0 (29 KOs), refused to rule out a move up to junior middleweight in the future.
“Maybe we'll be at 154, maybe not. I don't know, we'll sit. I mean, they're way popping right now. Hopefully, you might see me up there. So, you never know. They’re all great fighters.”
Ennis is focused on recording a big win against Chukhadzhian in their rematch on Saturday having won a unanimous decision in their first fight. According to Ennis, he must record an emphatic win on Saturday.
“That's what I need to do and then when I look for an outcome that's what's gonna come. He doesn’t do anything that concerns me. It was more of myself, it was me just not doing what I was supposed to be doing. I mean, it's me looking for the knockout instead of me letting it come to me.”
Bernard Neequaye is a sports journalist with a specialty in boxing coverage. He wrote a boxing column titled “From The Ringside” in his native Ghana for years. He can be reached on X (formerly Twitter) at @BernardNeequaye, LinkedIn at Bernard Neequaye and through email at bernardneequaye@gmail.com.