The life of Jaron “Boots” Ennis was difficult. Well of course, it’s hard to complain when you’re pocketing large wads of cash for beating people up for a living, but deep down inside, he was frustrated with his lack of opportunities.
The likes of Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford ran the welterweight division. And while their dominance was appreciated by fans, Ennis wasn’t totally impressed. Although he revered them, the 26-year-old was convinced that if he was just given the chance, he could beat them. That opportunity, however, never materialized.
To placate his title aspirations, the IBF sanctioning body allowed Ennis to fight for their interim title as Spence and Crawford fought for all of the marbles. Picking a winner was never important to Ennis. No matter who came out on top, he simply wanted his chance to lace up his gloves against the winner.
On July 29th, Crawford turned a supposed 50/50 clash into a one-sided beating as he dominated Spence, eventually stopping him in the ninth round.
As Crawford sauntered around with all four titles draped over his shoulders, Ennis followed him around, demanding his mandatory shot at his throne. Officially, BoxingScene.com has confirmed that the IBF has stripped the Omaha, Nebraska, native of his title. In turn, Ennis has been elevated to full champion.
In part, Crawford was unable to fulfill his mandated defense due to the contractual agreement he made with Spence several years ago. In the coming months, the two are expected to meet up again as Spence has already activated his immediate rematch clause.
It wasn’t the way Ennis wanted to begin his first championship reign but he’ll take what he can get. Now, with that shiny red belt in his possession, Ennis believes that the rest of the welterweight division’s elite have no reason not to fight him anymore.
“What’s gonna be their excuse now?” Asked Ennis on his social media account. “What’s gonna be their excuse now?”