IBF welterweight champion Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis (33-0, 29 KOs) defeated Karen Chukhadzhian (24-3, 13 KOs) by an unimpressive 12-round unanimous decision in a fight that was closer than the scores turned in by the three judges on Saturday night at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.
Chukhadzhian used his speed and technical skills advantage to land hard shots that the Boots often weren’t expecting. Boots’s chin is what saved him because he took some blistering punches from the surprisingly powerful Chukhadzhin, who showed strength that had never been there in the past.
Boots Confused by Chukhadzhian’s Style
Ennis knocked Chukhadzhian down in round five with a series of hard shots after hurting him with a left to the head. Chukhadzhian took a knee to escape the barrage of punches that Ennis was hitting him with.
In the tenth round, the referee penalized Chukhadzhian a point for excessive holding. He’d been holding a lot since the ninth round and fighting in spurts, looking to catch Ennis with a knockout blow.
After the point deduction, Chukhadzhian came alive, nailing Boots with hard shots that whiplashed his head. Chukhadzhian continued to get the better of Boots in rounds 11 and 12. However, he was still holding a lot, which gave the impression that he was tired.
Ennis looked confused by Chukhadzhian’s fighting style, his feints, shifting angles, and unpredictable punches that came out of nowhere. Ennis was often hit with punches that he wasn’t expecting from Chukhadzhian, and he had to take them. If not for Ennis’ sturdy chin, he’d have been knocked out because he was hit with all night that he didn’t see coming. Those are the worst kind to take.
During the rounds, Boots frequently talked to people in the crowd, and his trainer/father, Derek ‘Bozy’ Ennis, seemed frustrated with Chukhadzhian’s skills.
After the fight, Boots gave a disjointed interview with DAZN, saying that he might move up to 154, and then in next breath, changing his view and talking about wanting to do unification fights at 147. What he was consistent about was his unhappiness with his performance, and he blamed it on being at 147 for too long, and getting older. He seemed depressed.
The scores were 119-107, 117-109 and 116-110.
“I think it might be time to go to 154. I felt good, but at 154, I feel I’ll be way better, and my pop will be how it’s supposed to be. I’m getting older. I’m 27,” said Jaron Ennis to DAZN after his win over Chukhadzhian.
“In the first fight, he ran around for 12 rounds. He kind of stood and traded a little bit more. Did you expect that?” said commentator Chris Mannix.
“I was prepared for anything he had coming. It didn’t really matter to me,” said Ennis. “I’m glad I got the win, but like I said, I felt okay. On to bigger and better.”
“This is a fight that was forced on you. You had to defend your title against your mandatory. Did that make it hard at all to get up and train for a fight like this?” said Mannix.
“I wanted to do better this time and get the knockout. I hurt him a lot of times, and I was rushing,” said Ennis. “It’s okay.”
“There did seem at times to be a disconnect between what your father wanted in the corner and what you were delivering in the ring. It seemed like you weren’t giving what he wanted. Where was that disconnect?” said Mannix.
“I heard everything he was saying. I was just in there. I was listening and not listening at the same time,” said Ennis about him and his dad, Bozy. “He wanted me to use more angles, use my jab more, and stop standing in front. I did the opposite.”
