Another ‘he say, she say’ saga is hitting the boxing news waves after Eddie Hearn came out to debunk the notion that Jaron Ennis was looking for a tune-up, despite assertions from Turki Alalshikh that this was the case. With the assumption that Ennis’ first fight at super welterweight is going to be WBC interim champion Vergil Ortiz Jr, there appears to be some heavy contradictions from both sides which has not helped clear up what is actually going on.
Jaron Ennis’ (34-0, 30 KO’s) plans to move up to super welterweight (154 lbs) was confirmed after the fighter’s IBF welterweight (147 lbs) title was confirmed to have been vacated with his promoter, Matchroom chairman Eddie Hearn, further acknowledging that Vergil Ortiz Jr (23-0, 21 KO’s) was first on his list ― with August or September having been targeted for their fight.
Then came an interview from The Ring owner and Riyadh Season head Turki Alalshikh who claimed that Ennis had asked for two tune-ups on one of the Saudi chairman’s cards; a direct contradiction to earlier perceived plans for a Ennis-Ortiz bout.
Now again, this story appears to have evolved into something else as Eddie Hearn claims there are still intentions to face Ortiz though plans were stalled after claiming Ortiz had indicated he was not ready for a fight in August:
“So, we got asked to fight Vergil Ortiz on the August 16th undercard [of the upcoming Itauma-Whyte Riyadh Season show], of which he [Ennis] said, ‘Yes, we’d be interested’,” Hearn told Fight Hub TV.
“Vergil came back and said, ‘I’m not ready till later in the year’. Then we decided to lock in a fight for ‘Boots’ [Ennis] end of September, beginning of October. Then Turki [Alalshikh] came back and said, ‘Do you want to look at the fight for November 22nd?’. And we said, ‘Look, we’re taking this fight as our first fight at 154 [lbs]. We will agree the Vergil Ortiz fight in the process’.
“It’s not like we’re gonna take a fight then speak after. We can lock that fight in now. Myself and Golden Boy [Ortiz’ promoter] are talking about the fight. It’s going to be the biggest fight in America.
“This fight is happening; December, January, February ― Boots against Ortiz will happen. We’ve just got to have our fight, which we agreed because he wasn’t ready August 16th. There’s no drama. There’s no beef.“
Hearn’s statements provide a completely different picture that puts Vergil Ortiz as the main cause for the fight not yet being made given the promoter’s claims of Ortiz indicating he was not ready to fight on the undercard of the upcoming August 16th Riyadh Season show set to be headlined by Moses Itauma and Dillian Whyte.
According to Vergil Ortiz Sr, Ortiz’ father, Ortiz already has a fight lined up hence why a fight for August or September with Ennis appears unlikely.
“Look, don’t take anything they say seriously,” Ortiz Sr. stated to The Ring last month.
“They had a fight with us, and they took it. Then a week later, they said ‘no’ and then denied they did. I don’t believe anything they say. Vergil is already lined up for a fight. This isn’t, ‘Okay, we will drop everything we’re doing and fight you instead, because you’re now ready and want to do it on your terms’.
“They turned down record pay, so they are going to have to wait in line like everyone else does, and like we have ourselves.“
Alalshikh’s claims of Ennis wanting a tune-up or two at 154 lbs on a Riyadh Season or The Ring card have yet to be confirmed by either Jaron Ennis or Eddie Hearn but appears to be more of a strategic move in the lead-up to an Ortiz fight. Notably, this news came paired with Alalshikh’s astonishment at Ennis wanting an easy fight on one of his cards rather than a solely Matchroom-promoted card.
With both Ennis’ and Ortiz’ camp appearing to blame the other party for the August/September fight falling through, both teams seem to have their own motives in denying their fighters avoided the other.
What is likely the case will be both Ennis and Ortiz fighting other opponents before they face each other in what is expected to be later this year, or early of next year in 2026.
