Eimantas Stanionis holds the WBA welterweight title, yet he freely admits that many view IBF champion Jaron “Boots” Ennis as the future of the 147-pound division. Their clash on Saturday at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City might well determine the next leading force in a weight class that has seen both Terence Crawford and Errol Spence move on to other challenges.
“He’s really good - everything they say, he’s really good,” Stanionis told BoxingScene this week. “He can switch stances; he can bang; box; everything. Speed; IQ. I expect him to be my toughest opponent.”
Despite that assessment, Stanionis remains confident he can pull off a victory. While acknowledging Ennis’ versatility and physically imposing frame, the Lithuanian suggests experience from both his amateur days and his title-winning performances have equipped him to handle the high-stakes environment.
“I also had tough fights as an amateur - Olympic champions; everything,” said Stanionis. “I think I’ve seen it all. We both signed on the paper to make 147. If he’s a bit bigger, that’s okay. Sometimes it matters; sometimes it doesn’t.”
Ennis enters with an undefeated record and wide acclaim, but even his own trainer-father Derek “Bozy” Ennis has acknowledged the need for a nutritionist to manage the cut to welterweight. That raises questions about whether the cut might affect “Boots” in the ring. Still, Stanionis isn’t counting on a compromised foe: “For this fight I think we respect each other’s skills - we’re going to beat each other up.”
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Image Credit: DAZN