On Wednesday afternoon in New York City unified junior middleweight champ Xander Zayas and challenger Jaron "Boots" Ennis kicked off the attention for the late June showdown.
On Wednesday afternoon in Brooklyn, NY, unified WBO and WBA junior middleweight champ Xanders Zayas and unbeaten challenger, and former unified 147 lb. champ, Jaron "Boots" Ennis kicked off the media attention for their June 27th showdown there at Barclays Center. The bout headlines a Matchroom Boxing card in association with Top Rank and will stream live on DAZN PPV.
The Zayas-Ennis battle is a highly anticipated showdown between two young unbeatens that both have been in high profile title fights in the past two-three years.
Holding an undefeated record of 23-0, 13 KOs, Zayas unified the division in January with an impressive split-decision victory over Abass Baraou to take his WBA 154 lb. world title. That performance in his home country of Puerto Rico cemented his status at the top of the division. That built on his earlier decision win against Jorge Garcia, in New York last Summer, which earned him the WBO title.
“I have two belts. I’m the only one that has two belts in the division," Zayas said to Ennis Wednesday during the press conference. "You want these, I don’t need to fight you. I could have fought anybody else,”
He continued with the media after the formal press conference and stated why he's so confident against Ennis,
“There’s a lot of things I can take advantage of. I got the speed, I got the power, I got the length, I got the strength and I got the IQ!”
Meanwhile, the Philly native Ennis, who boasts a perfect 35-0 record with 31 KOs, now looks to make history by becoming a two-weight world champion. He dominated the welterweight division, with a recent standout performance coming in his decisive victory over Eimantas Stanionis, where he added the WBA world title to his IBF crown.
After clearing out the division, Ennis made the move up to 154 pounds in search of new challenges and he destroyed Uisma Lima in just one round last October.
He warned the young champ Zayas Wednesday,
“I’ve watched you fight several times. You do not move your noggin, bro. You get hit with clean flush shots," Ennis pointed out.
“Listen, though, you’re getting better, yes. It’s levels, bro, and I’m gonna really show you, all right, I’m really gonna show you. Please work on moving your head, though.”
The talking will continue with a question: whether Zayas can rise to the occasion and deliver a career-defining performance against such a formidable opponent? While, a victory for Ennis would solidify his reputation, as one of boxing’s elite fighters.