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Jaron Ennis vs. Vergil Ortiz fight in the first quarter of 2026

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Jaron “Boots” Ennis will be in line to fight Vergil Ortiz in the first quarter of 2026 if he secures victory in his junior middleweight debut this Saturday, according to Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn.

Ennis (34-0, 30 KO), 28, boxed Uisma Lima (14-1, 10 KO) in his first 154-pound fight at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia after climbing to No. 1 in the ESPN welterweight rankings.

Coming off a sixth-round TKO victory over Eimantas Stanionis in a world title unification fight in April, Ennis is looking to put on a stellar performance against little-known Lima, Angola, Portugal, in front of his hometown fans to catapult him into bigger fights.

Since the interim WBA title is at stake, Saturday’s winner will have a chance to fight WBA junior middleweight world champion Abass Barou (17-1, 9 KO) from Germany.

However, Hearn wants to make a bigger fight for Boots against Ortiz (23-0, 21 KO), who is scheduled to defend his interim WBC junior middleweight title against Erickson Lubin on November 8.

– Boxing division rankings: Novel fighter enters welterweight top 10 following Stanionis departure

“We want the biggest fights after Saturday, and for me the one that makes the most sense and that has been negotiated is Vergil Ortiz,” Hearn told ESPN. “We sat in a room with Golden Boy and DAZN, worked out a deal structure, and as part of his contract extension with us, Boots signed a contract for this fight with Ortiz.

“Eric Gomez [President of Golden Boy Promotions] he actually called me yesterday and said, “We want to do this fight, but we want to get our fight.” [vs. Lubin] first they will withdraw, and then we want this fight in the first quarter of 2026, so at the moment I take their word for it. We’ll see.

“I think it’s one of the best fights in boxing, I really do.”

Hearn expects Ennis to outperform at junior middleweight and says the Philadelphia boxer is ready to fight any world champion in 2026.

Ortiz, of Texas, and WBC junior middleweight world champion Sebastian Fundora (23-1-1, 15 KOs), of California, are ranked first and second, respectively, at 154 pounds in the latest ESPN rankings.

However, Hearn believes Ennis will simply move through the junior middleweight division and could even compete at super middleweight.

“The most significant thing is to get a shot at the 154-pound world title, and that could come [WBO] Xander Zayas, [IBF] Bakhram Murtazaliev, [WBC] Sebastian Fundora, WBA champion Abass Baraou or WBC interim champion Vergil Ortiz,” Hearn told ESPN.

“He’s going to be someone else at 154 pounds – and I don’t know how he got to 147 pounds. He could easily fight at 168 pounds, and I think middleweight is the division where you’re going to see him at his best.”

I believe Boots is the future No. 1 in the sport in weight-for-pound and the natural successor to Terence Crawford. We saw what he can do in Stanionis against the number 2 welterweight in the world, now I want to see him fight Ortiz, Murtazaliev, Zayas, and then I want to see him move up to 160 pounds and fight guys like Carlos Adames and Erislandy Lara. There will be at least a four-time world champion in my weight class, my opinion.

“At 147 pounds you saw a worn-out fighter but still phenomenal. The strange thing about boxing is that when a fighter goes up in weight, it’s still difficult for him to make weight. Everyone holds the weight tight and that’s an example that even at 154 pounds Boots will make it easier for him than at 147 pounds, but he’ll still be tight. He’ll do fine, but it’ll always be tight until he gets to a higher weight class.” “weight”.

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Boxing

Gilberto Ramirez leaves with two fights left

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Image: Gilberto Ramirez Eyes Exit With Only Two Fights Left

“I think one or two more fights,” Ramirez told Fight Hub TV when asked about his long-term plans. “I have been practicing this sport for a long time.”

Ramirez, 33, said that while he still wants to continue his career for now, he is already thinking about how his career will end, not how long it can be extended. Ramirez said he has achieved key goals in the sport, including becoming world champion in two divisions, but still wants to perform at the highest level before he retires.

That pursuit begins with Benavidez, a fight that Ramirez believes will define his status and push his name further to the top of the sport.

“I will beat him. That’s my plan, to fight Opetaia,” said Gilberto about his desire to fight former IBF cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia.

It’s a shoot-for-the-stars plan for Ramirez, but you can’t blame him for wanting to fight Opetaia. The biggest obstacle is not only the fight itself, but also where Jai Opetaia currently sits. Jai is now the face of Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing.

At the same time, Ramirez hinted at one last twist before his retirement. When asked about moving up again, he left the door open to a possible heavyweight fight, even admitting that he may not be the biggest fighter in the division.

“Why not?” Ramirez talked about moving up to heavyweight. “That would be amazing.”

If Zurdo loses to Benavidez, his plan for Opetaia will likely evaporate and he may just go straight to the heavyweight event for one last payday before he suspends them.

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Eddie Hearn expects Mayweather vs Pacquiao 2 fight to be canceled and replaced with world title fight

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Eddie Hearn expects Mayweather vs Pacquiao 2 to be cancelled and replaced by world title fight

The final decision may come after the Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao rematch drama ends.

Earlier this year, it was announced that Mayweather and Pacquiao were set to fight professionally more than 10 years after their first meeting, with the event streaming live on Netflix and taking place on September 19 at The Sphere in Las Vegas.

In recent weeks the duel was in doubt, after Mayweather stated that the fight would instead be an exhibition, while Pacquiao continues to insist that it must be a fully sanctioned fight.

Since it is currently unknown whether this will actually come to fruition, this has probably given the clearest signal that this will no longer happen.

Conversation with FightHypepromoter Eddie Hearn said he thinks Netflix can now focus on the WBC welterweight title fight between Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn, essentially replacing the Mayweather-Pacquiao event.

“It’s all a mess. I’m surprised Netflix got into this whole circus… Netflix is ​​modern to boxing, but they need to be a little more solid in the routine because you can’t actually call the fight and it just falls by the wayside and it just doesn’t look great.”

“NO [I don’t believe it will happen]not now. Netflix is ​​only going to do so many fights and the Benn-Garcia fight is now said to be on September 12 or whenever that happens, so obviously this is the fight to replace Mayweather-Pacquiao.

“If it happened Mayweather-Pacquiao, they are committed to that fight, but if it doesn’t happen they will want another fight and from the sound of it it will be Garcia vs. Benn.”

The world title fight between Garcia and Benn has been widely discussed this month, and if Hearn is right, it could spell the end of any hopes of Mayweather and Pacquiao fighting again.

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Junto Nakatani Banking size vs. Naoya Inoue

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Image: Junto Nakatani Banking On Size, Youth Against Naoya Inoue

“I think my size and youth should be a gigantic advantage. It gives me an even better chance to win,” Nakatani told The Ring.

Inoue’s reluctance to make the jump to 126 pounds at featherweight may be the most truthful admission of his physical limitations.

Inoue has fought fighters who hydrated to be hefty, but Nakatani is elevated. At 5’7″ or 5’8″, he has the skeletal leverage of a natural featherweight or super featherweight.

Most of Inoue’s opponents end up with confined time as they have to rush to hit him. Nakatani can theoretically sit outside and throw a punch without putting his chin in the red zone.

The numbers support this belief on paper. Nakatani will enter with a three-inch height advantage, a slight reach advantage and a five-year age difference. He also has natural size from climbing three weight classes, which he plans to exploit for the full distance rather than chasing an early finish.

“This fight will 100% be a war and I think I will win by decision once I overcome everything Inoue throws at me,” Nakatani said.

In his December victory over Sebastian Hernandez, Nakatani was forced into a fierce fight in which both men landed heavily, taking 273 punches in a back-and-forth fight that went the distance. He showed toughness, but also suggested he could get hit when exchanges open up.

It’s not that Inoue is afraid of fighting a bigger opponent, but more that he is a perfectionist who knows that when you lose your physical advantage, you have to rely completely on your endurance. Nakatani is the first fighter in a long time who can actually make Inoue look petite in the ring.

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