The purse bid between Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis and mandatory challenger Karen Chukhadzian took place today, but in a shock twist the outcome isn’t what most people would have expected.
Ennis was hoping to secure a unification showdown against WBO champion Brian Norman Jr, who had been elevated after Terence Crawford opted to vacate the belt and remain at 154lbs.
After some very public negotiations, the fight couldn’t materialise though, with Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn accusing Norman Jr of outpricing himself in the fight.
Norman is now expected to instead return with a title defence later this year against Derrieck Cuevas on the undercard of the the Keyshawn Davis vs. Gustavo Lemos fight in November.
The failure to make Ennis vs. Norman meant that purse bids instead went ahead for ‘Boots’ to take on mandatory challenger Chukhadzian, with most onlookers expecting Matchroom to win the purse bid and stage the fight later this year.
To the surprise of many, that isn’t the case though, after it was announced by Jake Donovan that Matchroom and Hearn lost the purse bid to rival outfit P2M Box Promotions.
“P2M Box Promotions has won the purse bid for Boots Ennis-Karen Chukhadzian IBF mandatory title fight. P2M, Karen’s promoter, outbid Matchroom Boxing by roughly $250,000 to gain rights to rematch.”
It is a bitter blow for Hearn and Matchroom to lose the purse bid, and it could mean that Ennis may relinquish his title, rather than fight on a rival show. There had been talking about potentially moving up to super-welterweight, where the likes of Crawford now compete.
Ennis and Chukhadzian had met previously back in January 2023, with Ennis winning a shutout unanimous decision, with all three judges scoring the contest 120-108. Due to the dominant nature of the win, fans haven’t been impressed by the prospect of a rematch, which Chukhadzian earned after three straight wins since that defeat to ‘Boots.’
Ennis became IBF champion last year after being elevated from interim champion, following Crawford’s inability to defend against him due to the contractual rematch with Errol Spence Jr, which in the end could not take place anyway.
Ennis has since made one defence of the belt after becoming full champion, claiming a dominant stoppage victory over David Avenesyan in July.
Boxing Social is now on WhatsApp! Join our channel by clicking here and getting all the latest boxing news direct to your phone.