Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis says he wants to move up to 154 after struggling to defeat the technically gifted Karen Chukhadzhian on Saturday night in their rematch at 147 in Philadelphia.
If Ennis moves up to 154, he can immediately challenge the IBF junior middleweight champion Bakhram Murtazaliev for his title and show the fans that his problems last night were bound to be drained. This was one of Ennis’ excuses for his problems with Chukhadzhian (24-3, 13 KO).
Chukhadzhian showed power that no one had ever seen from him before, as he looked like a miniature Artur Beterbiev with some of the blows with which Ennis was struck. You could hear Chukhadzhian’s punches landing on Ennis all night to know he was hit with power.
What prevented Chukhadzhian from winning was activity. He focused too much on landing single shots rather than knocking Boots down with activity like the undisputed lightweight champion Beterbiev does at 175.
If Chukhadzhian had taken it from close range and thrown punches non-stop, like Beterbiev, he would have knocked Boots out last night because he hit him with massive shots throughout the contest.
Can Ennis handle Murtazaliev’s power?
Murtazaliev (23-0, 17 KOs) is perhaps the biggest puncher at 154, and would be a major test for Ennis if he moved up to fight for his IBF belt. It would be a fight where Boots Ennis would need to be more defensively sound, as he could not depend on his chin to take the types of shots that Murtazaliev would have intended for 12 rounds.
Ennis took a lot of hard, clean shots from Chukhadzhian on Saturday night
Boots and his promoter, Eddie Hearn, have talked about wanting to face the interim WBC junior middleweight champion. Vergil Ortiz Jr. then in an event of the Riyadh Season if the right offer came. However, it would mean a lot more if Ennis chose to fight for a full belt against the king of the 154-lb division, Murtazliev, rather than for an interim belt against a fighter. coming off a controversial 12-time majority decision win over Serhii Bohachuk on August 10.
Excuse the boots
IBF welterweight champion Ennis (33-0, 29 KOs) blamed his problems in the Chukhadzhian fight on three reasons:
- Lack of pop in his fists: In the post-fight interview, Ennis said he lacked “pop” in his punches against Karen, and he thinks it would be different if he moved up to 154.
- Get older: The 27-year-old Ennis said he was getting old, and he saw that as a possible reason why he couldn’t deal with Chukhadzhian’s superior skills. Ennis seemed to lack the skills to deal with the Ukrainian fighter, who had abilities he did not have. Ennis had never learned the things that Chukhadzhian showed in the fight. So, he was a schoolboy, and he won only because of his activity level.
- It is not motivated: Ennis referred to Chukhadzhian as a “lower level” fighter in the post-fight press conference.
Ennis’ apologies for his inept performance were pathetic to watch, and it’s just another example of a fighter unable to face the truth. Given how depressed Ennis looked and sounded after the fight, he knows Chukhadzhian was the better fighter.
“I think it might be time to go to 154. I feel like at 154, I’m going to be much better, and my pop will be as it should be. If we can get one of these guys (an elite welterweight) to stop playing, let’s do it. But if it’s not, then 154, here it comes,” said Jaron Ennis to DAZN after his victory over Chukhadzhian on Saturday night.
Murtazaliev is not as skilled as Chukhadzhian, but he is not far behind and punches much harder. He has knockout power in both hands, as fans witnessed recently with his third round TKO victory over former WBO junior middleweight champion Tim Tszyu on October 19 in Orlando, Florida .
Ennis would have a lot of trouble against Murtazaliev, and it is doubtful if he will make it past the third round with the way he was hit by Chukhadzhian.
