Jaron Ennis‘ latest performance received some criticism from the boxing world.
IBF welterweight champion Ennis was in action against Karen Chukhadzhian in early November, a rematch of their battle from back in January 2023.
‘Boots’ was a comfortable winner on that occasion, winning every round on his way to a unanimous decision victory, so boxing fans felt he would be even more electric this time and secure the stoppage.
It wasn’t to be though, as despite dropping Chukhadzhian in round five, Ennis couldn’t get the finish and was caught with a lot of shots throughout the contest.
One man that wasn’t impressed with the performance was WBO champion Brian Norman Jr, who has been linked with a unification fight with his rival.
Norman told Boxing Scene that if he hits Ennis with the shots that Chukhadzhian was landing, he would have earned a knockout victory.
“The difference is, he wouldn’t have taken that left hook from me. I think it would’ve been night-night for him.
“Everybody has a bad night. It was just one of those nights. Karen’s been around a while. He’s got Ennis’ style down more than the average fighter would. But, you know, everyone has an off night. I saw he was open a lot, of course, and that he was getting hit a lot, too.
“Could be plenty of reasons why he looked that way, but like I said, anything could be the reason. It could be an off night, could be anything. But no matter the performance, I’m sure he’ll learn from it and come back better, whatever the case may be.”
Norman – who was last out in May with a stoppage of Giovani Santillan – and Ennis were in very public talks to stage the unification but things never progressed. Promoter Eddie Hearn said that team Norman turned down three offers for the fight.
