In the case of Jaron Ennis, there was a better way than settling for the mandatory

When the gifted and unbeaten welterweight talent Jaron “Boots” Ennis decided to join Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing, many of the dream phrases that had been denied Ennis were uttered.

“Holding the IBF title in one of boxing’s glamor divisions places Jaron front and center for some of the biggest fights out there in the sport, and we plan to deliver them for him,” Hearn said back then.

Yet, on the heels of Ennis’ homecoming fight in Philadelphia against a faded David Avanesyan in July – Ennis finished him in five rounds – Hearn has not found a way to escape a mandatory IBF rematch for Ennis (32-0, 29 KOs) against Karen Chukhadzhian (24-2, 13 KOs).

Not only does Ukraine’s Chukhadzhian bring nothing to the table to add intrigue or interest to the match, he’s only 19 months removed from being swept by Ennis, 120-108, on all three judges’ scorecards in a bout that took place in Washington.

It’s an astounding situation considering so many factors:

– Hearn has long come across as one of the most astute, eloquent individuals in the sport.

– There are a variety of routes to take to bypass an IBF mandatory, including the request of an exception that other promoters have employed in the recent past.

– At 27, Ennis is ascending into his peak. Taking this fight is only wasting days on the calendar of a rare talent who has drawn comparisons to Roy Jones Jr., and has seen former welterweight champions Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jr. take measures to avoid fighting Ennis.

– By all accounts, Matchroom is in sufficient financial shape to make the kinds of fights that Hearn originally spoke of, but the promotion was unable to propose an offer that could move either Premier Boxing Champions or Top Rank to arrange a welterweight unification bout that would have allowed Ennis to avoid the repeat mandatory assignment.

In a text message to BoxingScene on Wednesday, Hearn wrote, “We have made significant offers to (Ennis’ fellow welterweight champions).”

Asked about that, an official connected to Top Rank’s newly crowned WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr. (26-0, 20 KOs) said of Matchroom’s offer for the bout, “Too late and not enough.”

Another boxing official, who similarly spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of financial negotiations said Hearn previously calling his offer to PBC’s new WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios Jr. “substantial” was laughable, alleging it was said only to appease Ennis and his respected father-trainer, “Bozy” Ennis.

Again, the turn of events contrast sharply with what Hearn said previously, when he assessed the landscape following Crawford’s exit as undisputed 147-pound champion for the junior-middleweight division, which left Texas’ Barrios (29-2, 18 KOs) and Lithuania’s WBA champion Eimantas Stanionis (15-0, 9 KOs) of PBC as the other belt-holders.

In a story that quoted Hearn, it was written, “Ennis is in position to take control of the division. Hearn said he wants Ennis to unify the division.”

Hearn said, “I think they’re achievable, realistic fights because (Stanionis and Barrios) need a big fight and he will be the big fight for them.”

That statement required an asterisk: 

* – Unless you go cheap.

When he struck the deal to leave Showtime for DAZN and Matchroom/Hearn, Ennis himself said, “I can’t wait to continue making my mark and becoming undisputed world champion.”

He hasn’t taken one significant step closer to that pursuit with Matchroom.

And the surprising part of that is how Hearn only needed to look “across the street” to see how others have navigated the stipulations that come with being an IBF champion – mainly the sanctioning body leadership’s push to enforce mandatory fights.

A couple recent cases show how to wind through the mandates.

First, look at newly crowned 154-pound champion Bakhram Murtazaliev, a Russian former IBF mandatory who won the vacant belt in April in Germany and is now headed to his first title defense Oct. 19 in Florida against former junior-middleweight champion Tim Tszyu.

Murtazaliev (22-0, 16 KOs) wanted a title shot for several years earlier as he waited in line behind champion Jermell Charlo.

Knowing the limited selling power of Murtazaliev, PBC both arranged unification fights for Charlo – Sept. 26, 2020 against Jeison Rosario, July 17, 2021, against Brian Castano and Charlo-Castano II May 14, 2022 – while delivering Murtazaliev six-figure purses fighting other guys on PBC cards.

PBC did the same thing in May with Canelo Alvarez’s then-IBF mandatory challenger, William Scull, placing Scull on a non-pay-per-view undercard bout while gaining an exception for Alvarez to fight former junior-middleweight champion Jaime Munguia.

Yet, in the case of Ennis, Matchroom/Hearn let a deadline date this week expire without requesting an exception, leaving the bout subject to a purse bid open to other promoters by Sept. 3 if Matchroom doesn’t finalize the bout itself by then.

Because of a prior bribery scandal, the IBF – more than the three other sanctioning bodies – works to keep firm rules in place for its mandatory challengers.

When a promoter has an IBF champion, understanding those rules is essential for the times – like these with Ennis – when it’s in the champion’s best interest to string things out through unification bouts and invoking the exception.

With former IBF welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr., PBC guided the Texan through seven title defenses that were dotted with three unifications and just one MANDATORY – a first-round knockout of Carlos Ocampo at Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones’ The Star venue that led to Spence fighting the next time at the Cowboys’ home, AT&T Stadium.

What this does to the Ennis-Hearn relationship is unknown. Perhaps he’s listened fully to his promoter’s explanation, accepts it and is happy with his purse money.

What’s clear from reviewing the past is that for the boxing fans who yearn for the marquee fighters to participate in competitive bouts, there is a better way and a shrewder approach.

Lance Pugmire is BoxingScene’s senior U.S. writer and an assistant producer for ProBox TV. Pugmire has covered boxing since the early 2000s, first at the Los Angeles Times and then at The Athletic and USA Today. He won the Boxing Writers’ Association of America’s Nat Fleischer Award in 2022 for career excellence.