Jaron Ennis unbothered by his critics, vows to continue racking up victories
Jaron Ennis has never lost a bout as a professional, and dropped only a handful of rounds. He's never fought a full, three-minute round in which all three judges voted against him.
He's 30-0 with 26 knockouts and has been so dominant in his career that for his fight Saturday against 26-1 Roiman Villa, he's a -1400 favorite at BetMGM. Villa, who has 24 knockouts among his 26 wins, is a +1000 underdog for their bout Saturday (9:30 p.m. ET, Showtime) in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Ennis didn't get a knockout last time out, when he scored a lackluster unanimous decision over Karen Chukhadzhian to win the interim IBF welterweight title. Ennis swept all 12 rounds on all three cards, but it was a fight that didn't have the feeling of a wipeout. Chukhadzhian never stopped trying and was never seriously injured in the bout.
Ennis has looked fantastic in the overwhelming majority of his 30 bouts, so if he won a shutout on his supposed worst night, he's doing well.
His father, Derek, was once a fighter who compiled a record of 24-5-1 with 13 KOs in a career that ended in 2014. And he taught his son the ways of the game from an early age.
An old boxing adage reminds fighters to win the bout in front of you and worry about looking good in the next one. And like a grizzled veteran, Ennis wasn't bothered by any of the slings and arrows that came his way. Much was expected of him — and still is — and so when he doesn't score a spectacular knockout, it's news.
But he's not going into the fight with Villa with a chip on his shoulder or something to prove. He's going to do what he's always done: Win.
"To be honest with you, I don't care about what anybody might be saying about me," he said. "As long as I do what I'm supposed to do and I come out victorious, that's all that matters. At the end of the day, having fights like that is a learning experience. That's how you get better. [The criticism] isn't going to do anything but make me get better and sharpen me up. So I'm going to go out there and do what I'm supposed to do, do what we worked on, and hopefully take it to the next level."
Villa is 26-1 with 24 knockouts and is coming off a win over Rashidi Ellis. Sampson Lewkowicz, Villa's manager, told Yahoo Sports that Villa was intent upon fighting Ennis in his next outing. They both fought on the same Jan. 7 card.
Villa scored 24 knockouts in his first 24 wins, against just one majority decision loss. In his last two outings, he's scored decision wins over Janelson Bocachica and Ellis.
Ennis grinned at the news that Villa wanted to face him. Villa had a close-up look at Ennis, who did not know much about Chukhadzhian when they fought. He said his father had looked at some film of Chukhadzhian and told him he was a straight-forward fighter. He fought vastly differently against Ennis.
"One of the reasons I don't watch much film of guys I'm fighting is that, because they fight one way against someone else and they fight a whole different way when they get in there with me," he said. "My Dad and the other guys on me team were telling me they saw Karen and he was going forward and not moving around that much. They said he liked to press. But you saw how he fought me. So it's a perfect example of why I don't watch much [film]."
There's a pretty good chance, though, that Villa isn't going to change his style. That could make things explosive.
Villa has a quality knockout record, though his opposition wasn't at Ennis' level. Ennis has been one of the hot prospects in the sport and a potential star because of his charisma and his pulverizing power.
If Villa does go for the knockout, it could make it a night to remember.
"He comes forward and doesn't really move his head a lot," Ennis said of Villa. "He throws those big, wide hooks, some big, looping shots. There's a lot of things we've seen."
Not moving one's head is always an issue in boxing, but particularly against a fearsome puncher like Ennis.
"I guess I can punch a little," he said, chuckling.
It's just another weapon in the toolbox for him. People are excited for him, though, because he seems to have the full arsenal to make him an elite boxer.
If he gets that big win over Villa, it will just be reaffirmation that he's one of the best young fighters in a sport teeming with them.
