Jaron Ennis will now defend his IBF welterweight title against David Avanesyan on July 13 in Philadelphia. A boxing match was announced in the match room Tuesday.
Avanesyan (30-4-1 18 KO) replaces mandatory challenger Cody Crowley, who withdrew last week after failing to obtain medical clearance following November double-eye surgery.
The 35-year-old Russian is the eighth welterweight on ESPN. Avanesyan returned in November with a fourth-round TKO victory over the 11-55-3 journeyman. It was his first fight since he was spectacularly knocked out by Terence Crawford in the sixth round of their December 2022 fight.
“When I got the call to fight a great battle against such a highly rated fighter, I didn’t have to be asked twice, especially when it was for the world title,” said Avanesyan, who fights in England. “… This is my last chance to become world champion and I have to take advantage of it. I respect Ennis and his career because he is excellent, but he has what I want and need.”
Avanesyan defeated a faded version of Hall of Famer “Sugar” Shane Mosley in 2016 for the WBA interim welterweight title. He was elevated to champion before making his first defense against Lamont Peterson, which he lost by decision.
Avanesyan has already faced the best welterweight in the world in Crawford, and now he will fight Ennis, who hopes to finish at the top of the 147-pound division.
Ennis, ESPN’s No. 3 welterweight, is a rising star who signed a multi-fight deal with Matchroom in April. The 26-year-old previously fought exclusively on Showtime, which discontinued sports programming slow last year.
Now that Ennis (31-0, 28 KO) is linked to a major promoter, he hopes to become an attraction in Philadelphia, a city opulent in boxing history and once a hotbed of the sport.
“Everybody in Philadelphia has been waiting for this,” Ennis told ESPN in April in Novel York. “There hasn’t been a fight in Philadelphia for a while, or even a substantial fight. … No one has ever fought at the Wells Fargo Center. They didn’t have any substantial fights [in Philadelphia] too long.”
Ennis himself hasn’t fought in Philadelphia since November 2018, when he was still a top prospect. Ennis was elevated to champion in November when Crawford was stripped of the title.
With Crawford and Spence – the top two 147-pounders according to ESPN – both currently weighing 154 pounds, Ennis is in a position to take control of the division.
Ennis last fought in July, when he defeated Roiman Villa by KO in the 10th round.
“Now that Crowley is officially not my opponent, I really like Avanesyan as a better opponent,” Ennis said. There is a better fight, which is what I want.”