IBF welterweight champion Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis (32-0, 29 KOs) weighed in at 146 lbs, while Challenger Karen Chukhadzhian (24-2, 13 KOs) came in at 146.6 pounds for their 12-round head-to-head this Saturday, November 9 . at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.
(Credit: Mark Robinson / Matchroom Boxing)
WBC super flyweight champion Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez (20-0, 13 KOs) weighed in at 114.8 lbs, and Challenger Pedro Guevara (42-4-1, 22 KOs) came in at 114.4 lbs for their co-feature of 12 rounds. beaten on paper.
Saturday’s Ennis vs. Chukhadzhain event will be shown live on DAZN starting at 7:00 pm ET.
Weights
Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis 146 vs. Karen Chukhadjian 146.6
Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez 114.8 vs. Peter Guevara 114.4
There isn’t much fan interest in this card despite the promotional muscle Matchroom and DAZN have put behind it. The problem is that there is no demand for a rematch between Boots and Chukhadzhian in the main event. Bam Rodriguez, 24, is not known to casual boxing fans for these reasons:
– Youth
– Fight in lower weight classes
– Lack of experience against elite level competition
“It cost me a load of money, but what do you want me to do? Sulk? It’s the rules,” said Eddie Hearn Boxing news about Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis was ordered to fight Karen Chukhadzhian in a rematch, which few people are excited to see.
Hearn could put his foot down and refuse to allow Ennis to fight Chukhadzhian in a rematch because it’s a move that hurts both of them. Ennis’ career will be stunted with these types of fights, and it does nothing for Hearn.
“I really admire the IBF for adhering to its rules, but it frustrates the life out of me that they did not apply common sense to this station. We want more time to make the Brian Norman fight for the unification fight,” he said Hearn.
Even with more negotiation time, Hearn would not have had the unification match with WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr. gathered for Boots because he wanted more money than he was willing to pay. Hearn might have been old, but he still wouldn’t have done the deal without coming up with the extra $500,000 that Norman Jr. he wanted
“We ran out of time. We had a scholarship offer. It was either lose the belt or fight Chukhadzhian,” Hearn said. “I said to Boots, ‘Tell me what you want to do, man. I will strengthen you 100%. If I’m going to put up the money for this fight, I’m going to put up the money because it’s part of a long-term plan. You will be ruling the sport for a long time.
We don’t know if Ennis will rule the sport for a long time, as Hearn says. I know Boots stays at welterweight, he could hold his IBF title for a long time, but that’s only because the division is weak. It is perhaps the weakest level in more than 20 years. All the talented fighters are at 154, and Boots doesn’t want to move up for some reason. Is it scary? Some boxing fans believe that this is the reason that Boots would have the easy choice in junior middleweight, which he does at 147.
Top fighters at 147:
- Jaron Ennis
- Brian Norman
- Mario Barrios
- Eimantas Stanionis
- Ryan Garcia
- Devin Haney
“He said, ‘I want the belts at 147.’ I said, ‘Then let’s fight him. Do it. I’m going to build a massive card. Let’s make it happen. So, we did it, and on Saturday night, I think we’re going to get a good fight,” Hearn said.
If Ennis is going to stay at welterweight until he achieves his goal of becoming undisputed, he must be prepared to sacrifice time in his career. As long as Ennis is fine with staying at welterweight for another three to four years to achieve his goal, he’ll be fine. He may be in his 30s at the time, and it will be harder for him to move up to the 154 lb weight class when he moves up.
