The welterweight division’s once murky waters are now crystal clear.
Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford were the talk of the town. For years on end, they both claimed that they were the best 147-pounders on the planet. But someone had to separate themselves. On July 29th, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, the two finally squared off.
In terms of oddsmakers, they were torn. Although their undisputed showdown was essentially a toss-up, Crawford made it look easy, dropping and stopping Spence in the ninth round.
From a distance, Jaron Ennis has reluctantly accepted his position as a fighter who passes the eye test, but one who’s too dangerous and not financially pleasing enough for the upper echelon.
The 26-year-old hasn’t wasted his breath fulminating. He simply goes about his business like normal and dominates whoever is put in front of him. But while Ennis is becoming best friends with patience, Derek “Bozy” Ennis, his father and trainer, is tired of waiting.
“Terence is a helluva fighter,” said Bozy to YSM Sports Media. “I like all of them guys, Terence, Spence all them dudes. They good fighters but we want our chance.”
No matter how loud he complains, team Ennis is being pushed to the side. According to Crawford, a fight against Ennis doesn’t bring enough monetary value to the table and it doesn’t push his legacy to the next level. Spence, on the other hand, has his heart set on moving up to 154 pounds.
The rest of the division is filled with former champs such as Keith Thurman and Yordenis Ugas, as well as up-and-coming stars – most notably, Eimantas Stanionis.
At some point, whether it’s the old dogs attempting to hold on a bit longer or the young bucks looking to make a name for themselves, Bozy believes that they should all mix it up. If he ultimately gets his wish, only one name, in his opinion, will be standing over the rest.
“That’s what we in the game for. The best fighting the best and I think my son is the best.”