Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis scoffs at Vergil Ortiz Jr.’s criticism: ‘Same guy who’s been down a lot’
Jaron “Boots” Ennis’ sixth round victory over Xander Zayas to capture the combined WBA and WBO super welterweight titles was so impressive that he won Uncrown’s award for best boxing performance in the first six months of 2026. But one man who was not impressed was leading 154-pound Ortigil, J.
During Ennis’ highly anticipated fight with Zayas in late June, with the champion now seemingly on the move in Round 3, Ortiz wrote two tweets aimed at Ennis.
Ennis responded to Ortiz’s comments on Monday’s episode of “The Ariel Helwani Show.”
Advertisement
“The same person who has sat down many times,” Ennis replied. “He’s getting hurt [in his fights]. This guy was just talking, and I understood that. What will happen if I touch him [in our fight]? Make sense of that.
“I always went down there [to Fort Worth, Texas, to watch Ortiz vs. Erickson Lubin last November] – Eddie and I [Hearn, promoter] and my brothers went down there alone. No, we don’t get an invitation, nothing. We were not paid for the tickets. We came alone to let them know that we want this war.
“We came to them face to face. They didn’t want to let us in the ring. They didn’t want us to sit where we were sitting. They were pressuring us. Right there, when I got there, and I saw that it shows that these guys don’t want a real fight, really.”
In an impressive display this past year, Ortiz knocked out Erickson Lubin in Round 2 to defend his interim WBC super welterweight title. Ortiz was later joined in the ring by Ennis, where the two traded heated words that led many to believe we will be treated to one of the best fights in the sport in the first half of 2026.
Advertisement
“When he won, we got in the ring, faced each other, whatever, and he did as they wanted,” Ennis said. “Next thing you know, we’re walking out of the ring, we hear him doing an interview about Errol Spence being his dream fight. Like, what? You don’t make sense. If I go ahead and do something like that, everybody’s going to be crazy. If I fought and said Danny Garcia was my dream fight, everybody would be crazy. It’s crazy.
“We went there alone and let them know we wanted this fight, and I thought this fight was locked in, set in stone. I was sitting back, waiting. We had a few days and it just kept going, and they came with whatever they came in. It is what it is.
“Like I said, this is my phase. I take the phase. I do what I want.”
Ennis and Ortiz were aiming for a March 28 and April 18 date at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand. Negotiations, however, stalled after a Nevada judge granted Ortiz’s promoter, Golden Boy, a temporary relief against his fight in March, meaning Ortiz – who declared himself free – could not sign the fight with Ennis.
Advertisement
“Boots” was forced to look elsewhere for his next opponent, which he found in Puerto Rico’s Zayas last month at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Arbitration was eventually ordered between Ortiz and Golden Boy, but it doesn’t appear that it will be needed. Reports say the teams are close to finalizing a deal that will see Ortiz return to his promoter for at least three fights remaining on his contract. Golden Boy CEO Oscar De La Hoya confirmed to DAZN that the relationship is on the mend and that Ortiz will return to the ring in 2026.
With Ortiz likely to be out of the ring for up to a year when his next fight starts, many thought he would play before the Ennis fight, but his trainer, Robert Garcia, insisted to Boxing Scene last week that Ortiz could go straight into the Ennis fight.
Advertisement
However, with Ennis holding two world title belts, he has no shortage of options.
“We will find them all [Ortiz, Sebastian Fundora and Josh Kelly]one by one,” announced Ennis. “Whatever’s next – we’ll talk to my team and figure out what’s best and what’s next. I’m here to take this stage, though. This is my category. This boxing game is mine. And I will not be contradicted [champion] at this stage.”
Jaron Ennis (L) and Vergil Ortiz Jr. (R) face off in November 2025.
(Cris Esqueda/Golden Boy via Getty Images)
“[The biggest fight in the division] it is in the middle [me versus Sebastian] Love it once [me versus] Ortiz,” Ennis continued. “I feel like Fundora is a bigger fight because he has the belt, and he’s what — 6-foot-5 or 6-foot-6, or something like that. That’s something everyone will want to see. They want to see how I meet that.”
Advertisement
A unification fight with WBC champion Fundora seems unlikely next due to the mandatory bond placed on Fundora. But Ennis’ promoter, Matchroom, who also represents IBF champion Josh Kelly, presented an alternative fight to unify “Boots.”
Ennis confirmed to Uncrown that he wants to return to the ring in November or December. He also said he would like to fight in New York again in the future or test his drawing power in Chicago or Atlanta, the latter of which has hosted two successful events for Gervonta “Tank” Davis and is playing home to Claressa Shields next month.
