Ennis Has a Mandatory Challenger – Hearn Names the Man

Matchroom Boxing head Eddie Hearn has revealed who holds the rights to face IBF and WBO welterweight champion Jaron Ennis as a mandatory challenger — and insists it’s not a name that can be brushed aside.

“I think Ennis could go on a serious winning run right now, but he has a mandatory — Shakhram Giyasov. And that complicates things a bit, because he’s already stepped aside once for this fight. And we, by the way, represent Giyasov.

So it’s not as easy as saying, ‘Hang on there, buddy.’ He already stepped aside once. And I know Shakhram — he’s a real fighter. He did that for us, because he understood how important that bout was. But now he’ll say: ‘No, no — now it’s my turn.’ You get what I’m saying? And that’s absolutely fair. So let’s see how it plays out,” Hearn said.

In his most recent fight, Ennis defeated Eimantas Stanionis after six rounds, when Stanionis' corner stopped the bout.