Jaron Ennis believes that he’s paid his dues and his time has come. The 26-year-old has looked practically flawless from the beginning. His defense? Impregnable. His offense? Jaw-dropping. Simply put, Ennis looks like he has the goods. (photo by Ryan Hafey)
Slowly, the Philadelphia star has been placated by the powers that be. Of course, Ennis (31-0, 28 KOs) wants his shot at a world title but with Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford spending the last several years hogging up all of the welterweight gold, Ennis was forced to wait.
An interim IBF strap made Ennis crack a bit of a smile but until he’s given a shot at a full title, he won’t be completely satisfied. With that said, Ennis knows that just because you want something in the sport of boxing, it doesn’t mean that it’ll happen. As for his next move, the smooth-switcher has only a few options.
His preferred choice is to face Crawford for all of the welterweight marbles. In all likelihood, however, that’ll never happen. With Crawford too busy chasing Canelo Alvarez, a matchup against Ennis is essentially a pipe dream at this point. Option number two for Ennis is to take on a notable name. The welterweight division is flooded with those but Keith Thurman fits the mold perfectly.
A former unified champion who was once considered the best 147-pounder on the planet? That’s the exact name that Ennis believes he needs.
For the most part, Thurman (30-1, 22 KOs) has been lukewarm to the idea. Although he hasn’t shown too much interest in facing Ennis, the 34-year-old isn’t exactly opposed to it. First, Thurman is looking to regain his own championship status with a matchup against Crawford. If that doesn’t happen, a showdown against Ennis is one he would welcome.
“Of course I’ll entertain a fight with him,” Thurman told MillCity Boxing. “If that’s the contract that comes in my face and we can’t get a champion.”