IBF welterweight champion Jaron Ennis will exchange blows with old rival Karen Chukhadzhian from Ukraine in a few hours to defend his title. The duo will headline a star-studded card in Ennis’s hometown of Philadelphia at the Wells Fargo Center. In the meantime, however, former interim WBC lightweight champion Ryan Garcia seems to have gotten caught in the crossfire, as ‘Boots’ responded to a critic online. 

‘Boots’ aims to dominate the 147-pound division and become the undisputed champion by unifying the belts through fights against title holders like Mario Barrios, Eimantas Stanionis, and Brian Norman Jr. Yet ahead of his rematch against Chukhadzhian, the 27-year-old was warned about his bad habits in the ring if he ever fights Garcia. 

In a recent interview with DAZN Boxing, Ennis opened up with candid reactions to fan comments left on the post-fight press conference video from his July showdown with David Avanesyan. So, what did the comment say? “He always dropping his hands,” one user had commented, criticizing Ennis. 

“If he ever fights Ryan [Garcia], he gotta cut that out. [If] that left hook catches him while his hand down, it’s over.” This comment didn’t make much sense to the Philadelphia native, who brushed off the critic’s comment, stating, “Ryan[‘s] too small. He [is] too small. Why bring it up?” 

Ryan Garcia is currently serving his one-year suspension after the NYSAC banned him from boxing for testing positive for ostarine during his April fight against Devin Haney. ‘King Ry’ will be allowed to fight after April next year, with fans hoping for a rematch with ‘The Dream.’ Regardless, here’s where things start to get wicked.

Jaron Ennis’ father shares take on a potential fight against Ryan Garcia

You see, Ryan Garcia’s father, Henry Garcia, recently expressed interest in his son potentially facing Jaron Ennis for his comeback in April. Responding to this, Ennis’ father and trainer, Derek ‘Bozy’ Ennis, expressed their openness to having the bout. “I hope it’s the truth,” Bozy Ennis said. “So, I’d rather fight him. He got a bigger name and a bigger following. So that’s the only right thing to do.”

Even Ennis’ promoter Eddie Hearn has commented on the matter, but he feels it’s all talk and no action. “Come on, let’s be real, yeah. There’s no way in a million years they’re going to fight Boots,” Hearn said, as he laughed at the prospect. The Matchroom honcho claims he would be open to making the title fight happen first thing after Garcia comes out of suspension. “But they won’t, but we’d love to make that fight happen,” Hearn added. 

That being said, it’s interesting to see how Jaron Ennis brushed off the idea of fighting Ryan Garcia so easily while his promoter and father are eager to make the fight happen. Garcia last fought at super lightweight, it’s unclear whether he plans to come to welterweight in his first fight back. What do you think about this potential fight?