On Saturday night, Washington DC hosted the IBF interim-welterweight title fight between Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis (30-0, 27 KOs) and Karen Chukhadzhian (21-2, 11 KOs). The matchup was on the undercard of the main event lightweight clash between Gervonta Davis and Hector Luis Garcia.
Ennis went to distance against his Ukrainian opponent, earning a unanimous decision victory after 12 rounds. The judges had it 120-108 in favor of Ennis at the end of the bout.
It was a dominant performance from the American fighter who never looked in danger by Chukhadzhian’s punch output throughout the match but wasn’t able to finish him. Nevertheless, this was a fight where Ennis can learn and get better for his next outing.
In the beginning of the fight, it was back and forth later on Chukhadzhian began moving around the ring, with Ennis attempting to cut off the ring and threw jabs. However, Chukhadzhian was quick on her feet and able to dodge most of the blows.
The match had a slow start but midway, it began to edge in favour of Ennis. Although Chukhadzhian put up a good defense by moving constantly and not allowing Ennis to get too close, his efforts weren’t enough.
In the 10th round, Chukhadzhian was hurt by a body shot from Ennis but after taking some time to recover he continued to move around the ring and box defensively for the remaining few minutes of the fight. Despite his efforts, he couldn’t gain enough control over rounds and lost out on points in the end.
The win marks Ennis’ 30th consecutive undefeated victory and secures his spot as one of boxing’s rising stars. Boots is now the mandatory challenger for the IBF title which is held by the unified welterweight champion Errol Spence.
