Shakur Stevenson Wants Ennis Boots to Challenge Vergil Ortiz Jr. In 154 years

Shakur Stevenson Wants to see Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis move up to 154 to fight Vergil Ortiz Jr., his WBC junior middleweight title.

Stevenson feels Ennis (32-0, 29 KOs) will have more than enough talent to defeat 26-year-old Vergil (22-0, 21 KOs), who is coming off a 12-round majority decision win over Serhii. Bohachuk on August 10 in Las Vegas. Vergil was struggling and being challenged all night by Bohachuk.

Boot Ennis, 27, hasn’t said anything about moving up to junior middleweight yet, but he may need to because it doesn’t look like he’ll ever get the chance to make the 147-lb division. Ennis’ promoter, Eddie Hearn, ran into problems when trying to negotiate with other welterweight champions. They want a lot of money.

Ennis is training to defend her title against Karen Chukhadzhian (24-2, 13 KOs) in their rematch on November 9th at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. The IBF ordered the fight, so Ennis had no choice but to face Chukhadzhian again. Ennis wants to make a statement this time by taking him out.

“I’d like to see Boot step up right now and fight Vergil Ortiz. I think Brother is right. Yeah, but Boots for sure,” Shakur Stevenson told GBHTV about wanting Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis to move up to 154 to challenge WBC junior middleweight champion Vergil Ortiz Jr.

Ennis has to move up to 154 to increase his upside because it doesn’t look like he’ll ever get a 147-weight fight. If he stays at weight, he will continue to have problems trying to get big fights.

“Vergil is tough, though,” coach Greg Hackett said. “I think Boots will have his way, but Vergil is a big boy.”

“Vergil can take that [stuff] that Bhuti is eating? Can he take that?” Shakur said.

“That is the question. That MF hit me with a gun today, and he hit 18 ounces, and we didn’t say anything,” said Hackett about Boot.

“He held me back, he stabbed me in the ring. I said, ‘What kind of jab is that? It’s coming at 100 miles an hour. OK, I’ll defend myself,’” Shakur said of Boot Ennis,