Promoter Eddie Hearn says welterweight star Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis will be ringside this Saturday for the Terence Crawford vs. Israil Madrimov DAZN PPV event at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles.
According to Hearn, Ennis is the best choice for Crawford if he can’t get the fight against Canelo Alvarez in the first quarter of 2025.
Unfortunately, Crawford won’t be able to fight Alvarez because the Mexican star has said he has no interest.
Unless something changes, Crawford must look elsewhere for his next fight, provided he wins on Saturday night against Madrimov. Crawford’s best option is Boots Ennis.
“We have another star in Jaron Ennis that we’re looking forward to the future with, and he’s the best welterweight in the world. There’s absolutely no question about it,” said promoter Eddie Hearn to Pro Boxing Fans, talking about the young phenom Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, who recently signed with Matchroom and is being built into the next mega-star in the sport.
“He’ll be here, of course,” said Hearn when asked if ‘Boots’ Ennis will be ringside this Saturday for the Crawford vs. Madrimov fight at the BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. “Obviously, I want Madrimov to win, but if Crawford comes through and doesn’t get Canelo, I think he should fight ‘Boots’ Ennis.
The Tradition of Passing the Torch
Crawford may not like being used as a stepping stone by ‘Boots,’ but that’s how the sport has historically operated.
The older fighters face the young lions, who are transformed into stars. That’s how Crawford became a star by beating these older fighters who were willing to fight him.
Shawn Porter
Kell Brook
Amir Khan
Errol Spence
Viktor Postol
Yuriorkis Gamboa
Ricky Burns
Julius Indongo
David Avanesyan
Hank Lundy
Ray Beltran
Briedis Prescott
Is Crawford Being Selfish?
As you can see, all of Crawford’s notable wins were against older lions, and now he doesn’t want to do his part by being a stepping stone for ‘Boots’ Ennis. Is it selfish on Crawford’s part? I think it is. Older fighters like Crawford owe it to the sport to boost the younger talents by letting them face him.
Hearn doesn’t say whether the young talent Ennis (32-0, 29 KOs) will attempt to enter the ring to call out Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) if he’s victorious tomorrow night.
Considering Crawford’s unyielding, stubborn resistance to facing ‘Boots,’ it’s predictable that security will prevent him from entering the ring to publicly call him out in front of the millions of fans who will be watching.
“Everybody respected Bivol before the fight, just like everyone respects Madrimov, but no one gave him a chance. He has unbelievable ability, as does Dmitry Bivol, and Bivol won quite comfortably,” said Hearn.
Madrimov enters Saturday’s fight with Crawford in the same position as Bivol when he fought Canelo Alvarez in 2022 and pulled off an upset. No one gave Bivol any chance of winning that fight, but he showed them how wrong they were.
Madrimov could do the same thing against Crawford on Saturday night and put himself in a position to fight Canelo in the first quarter of 2025. Canelo might be more willing to fight Madrimov because it would replay his first fight against a vintage Gennadiy Golovkin in 2017. Fans would love to see Canelo fight a GGG copy.
“For me, don’t be surprised if Madrimov wins this fight on Saturday. He’s up against a generational great in Terence Crawford, but he’s live, he’s fresh, he’s in his prime, and he’s punching very, very hard, and he’s the best 154-pounder in the world, in my opinion. So, I believe he can do it,” said Hearn about his belief that Madrimov can upset Crawford.
I don’t even know if you can call it an upset if Madrimov beats Crawford because he’s the younger, stronger, and more active fighter of the two. Crawford is on the wrong side of 30, rarely fights, and hangs on just for money.
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