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Leverage forces Ennis Ortiz to reach April deal

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Image: Leverage Finally Forces Ennis vs Ortiz Toward a Deal

The update was the clearest sign yet that months of public negotiations, legal tensions and posturing had finally given way to an agreement.

The date is not accidental. For much of the past three months, the fight has been waged in theory while alternatives have been publicly presented. Ortiz’s team insisted on A-team status. Other options were referred to. The rhetoric was clamorous. There was minimal traffic.

What has changed is not sentiment. It was leverage.

Why the conversations suddenly changed

Multiple industry reports, later expanded by BoxingScene writer Jake Donovan, made it clear that DAZN had no interest in financing any fight by either fighter that did not include the other. As this position hardened, the negotiating space quickly narrowed. There was no longer a credible financial exit ramp.

This reality coincided with instability elsewhere. Golden Boy Promotions was nearing the end of its existing contract with DAZN. Ortiz was involved in a lawsuit seeking to invalidate his endorsement contract, alleging breach and interference. This combination left little room for risky maneuvers. Whatever leverage existed on paper was no longer supported by a willing platform.

From that moment on, fighting ceased to be a debate and became a necessity.

Ennis made his intentions known last fall, traveling to Fort Worth to watch Ortiz win over Erickson Lubin, and immediately afterwards publicly calling for a fight. The enthusiasm was real, but enthusiasm alone did not move the negotiations. Progress only came when financial alternatives disappeared.

This order is critical. This redefines the fight not as a triumph of ambition or fan demands, but as an example of how newfangled boxing power actually works. In 2026, A-side status will no longer be something a promoter can declare. It only exists if the broadcaster is willing to finance it.

Donovan’s reports filled in the connective tissue around this reality. His account detailed the halt in talks, the tough agreements adopted at the beginning and the peaceful change when it became clear there was no appetite for substitutes. The climbs were consistent. Once the platform’s position was understood, resistance weakened.

If the fight ends this week, it will be accepted for sporting reasons. Ennis vs Ortiz is a fight the division has been talking about for years. But it will also be a reminder that the fight occurred not because all sides suddenly agreed, but because the economic environment eliminated every other option.

Ultimately, the ego did not put up this fight. Reality did.

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World champion claims Conor Benn pulled out of fight after ‘setting up the whole deal’

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World champion says Conor Benn pulled out of fight after the ‘whole deal was set up’

Conor Benn could be ready for a world title fight against Ryan Garcia, but there is one reigning world champion who claims the Briton recently pulled out of a title shot even though “the whole deal has already been done.”

Benn made his Zuffa Boxing debut earlier this month. defeating Regis Prograis in a 150-pound catchweight bout – his first fight at sub-154 pounds in four years – and now he looks ready to fight for world titles at welterweight.

Although his position as mandatory challenger for the WBC title put him in line to face Garcia, WBA 147-pound champion Rolando Romero claimed that Benn had withdrawn from the title fight.

I’m talking to Fighting Hub TV“Rolly” explained why he doubted the Garcia fight would happen and revealed that he expected to fight Benn until “The Destroyer” changed his mind.

“Conor Benn waived me, we had the whole deal done, we were supposed to fight on May 30 in Fresh York for my world title, and then he just disappeared out of nowhere.

Conor Benn was there begging to fight me. By the way, we already had everything planned, but he’s in Fresh York trying to create all this fuss and stuff – he did it for advantage. Same with this, he can do this with Ryan too to gain strength.

“They’re out there trying to do all this stuff, I don’t do this imitation beef. That throws me off, you go and do all this imitation beef and then you come here and act like a gigantic, tough guy and then you run away and don’t fight.”

“Maybe he was doing it with Ryan because Ryan would have knocked him out cool.”

Garcia and Benn could collide this summer in Las Vegas when Benn returns to the welterweight division in a direct world title fight.

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Jermell Charlo picks Tim Tszyu to defeat Errol Spence Jr

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Image: Jermell Charlo Picks Tim Tszyu to Beat Errol Spence Jr

Charlo then launched into a longer explanation, questioning what version of Spence would emerge after his years outside the ring and claiming that style favored Tszyu.

“He has little defense. Errol will come in softly. He doesn’t really move his head. Tim moves his head. He throws a few stone hay shots. “I just follow my fighting style and be realistic.”

Jermell looked like a war veteran and described the fight, giving reasons why he chose Tszyu to beat Spence.

For years, these two towers were the “Twin Towers” of Derrick James’ gym in Dallas. They shared celebrations, sweat and secrets. The problem is that Errol was very vocal about these sessions, essentially telling the world that he was “teaching” Jermell.

For a guy like Charlo, who carries enormous pride and has built his “Lions Only” brand on being the alpha, having a former teammate claim dominance over him is a stain he can’t wash off in a sanctioned fight.

Having never fought professionally, these gym stories are the only narrative that exists and you have to wonder if it’s still eating at him.

Charlo also indicated the location, with the fight expected to take place in Australia.

“He’s going to Australia there. I see Tim Tszyu winning that fight,” Jermell said.

X is having a field day because Charlo looks like a man who sat in a dim room and watched Spence’s training videos over and over again. Fans call this the “villain arc” energy. He spoke quickly, louder and louder, and seemed personally interested in the answer.

During the prophecy, Jermell had a diabolical look in his eyes, as if he were performing a technical exorcism on his elderly rival.

When he has such wide eyes and high energy intensity, he tends to rely on his “Only Lions” personality, which thrives on perceived disrespect. In this case, the disrespect is the years in which Errol Spence Jr. he claimed to be the “substantial brother” at the gym.

“I don’t have to fight Errol Spence and I don’t care about fighting Errol Spence,” Jermell said.

Jermell is essentially using Tim Tszyu as a proxy. Since Charlo hasn’t fought at 154 pounds since 2022, he needs Spence to lose to someone else to prove that the elderly era (the Derrick James era) is over. If Tszyu destroys Spence, it will validate Charlo’s technical criticism and make his inactivity look like a calculated move rather than a decline.

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Roy Jones Jr sums up Tyson Fury’s chances of beating top-ranked Lennox Lewis

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Roy Jones Jr sums up Tyson Fury’s chances of beating a prime Lennox Lewis

Britain has produced some great heavyweights in recent years, ending an almost century-long curse and seeing success in the division ever since. Predicting the outcome of the clash between two of the best fighters in the country, Lennox Lewis and Tyson Fury, Roy Jones Jr said it would be a “great fight”.

Bob Fitzsimmons became the first British world heavyweight champion in 1897, and he and Jones remain the only two fighters in boxing history to have won both middleweight and heavyweight world titles.

However, Great Britain struggled for success in the division after the Fitzsimmons fight, unable to claim heavyweight supremacy until Lennox Lewis became WBC world champion in 1992. Britain has since crowned its title 11th world heavyweight championFabio Wardley, who follows in the footsteps of Fury and Anthony Joshua.

In an interview with Grosvenor CasinoJones said he would give Lewis an advantage over the “Gypsy King” if they met in their prime.

“Tyson Fury vs. Lennox Lewis? That would be a great fight, but my first thought was Lennox Lewis because of his power. But my second thought was also that Tyson Fury was great at making adjustments. I would go with Lennox Lewis.”

At least one heavyweight world title is expected to remain in a Briton’s hands for some time, with Daniel Dubois scheduled to face another Briton, Fabio Wardley, for the WBO belt next month.

In the meantime, we hope 21-year-old Moses Itauma can continue Britain’s success for many years to come, with the youngster considered by many to be the hottest prospect in boxing.

As for Fury, he is focused on the UK-wide megafight with Joshua – their own ‘Battle of Britain’ after Lennox fought Frank Bruno in 1993.

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