By Sean Jones: Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman says he’ll fight unbeaten Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis if a contract is sent to him and if he can’t get a world title shot at welterweight.
Fighting ‘Boots’ Ennis (31-0, 28 KOs) could give former WBA & WBC 147-lb champion Thurman to show the boxing world that he still has ambition and is not just a lazy shiftless guy looking for big paydays that aren’t being offered to him anymore.
Thurman is a classic example of a fighter that has ruined his once-promising career with inactivity.
When a fighter has been inactive as long ass Thurman has, you’re forgotten and no longer relevant. Young fans don’t know who Thurman is, as they view him as a balding guy who occasionally is interviewed on YouTube, talking about his past.
Thurman might as well take the fight with Boots Ennis because he’s been out of the ring for 18 months since his comeback win over Mario Barrios last year in February. Before that, Thurman had been inactive for 31 months after his loss to 40-year-old Manny Pacquiao in 2019.
Thurman has wasted the better part of the last six years by fighting just three times since his win over Danny Garcia in 2017,
With Terence Crawford holding all four titles and tied up with a rematch with Errol Spence Jr., it doesn’t look like the 34-year-old ‘One Time’ Thurman (30-1, 22 KOs) will be getting a world title shot anytime soon unless isn’t against WBA secondary belt-holder Eimantas Stanionis.
“Y’all talk about Ennis. We barely talk about Claressa [Shields]. She got more hype than Boots, and y’all want me to say that he’s the one? Y’all want me to say that he’s the man?” said Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman to MillCity Boxing about Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis.
“If that’s the contract that comes in my face and I can’t get a champion,” said Thurman about him being willing to fight Boots Ennis if he can’t get a title shot, which appears to be the case.
“Look at the man’s record. Yeah, he’s undefeated, claiming up. He wants a shot. I wanted a shot,” Thurman continued about Boots Ennis. “They never gave me a shot. I had to fight this guy that guy. I had to live the same life.
“Then finally, I get my first name fighter, Robert ‘The Ghost’ Guerrero [in 2015]. Did I really want Guerrero? No, but he fought Floyd Mayweather.
“I don’t know what kind of measuring stick Ennis has got. He’s fighting a bunch of guys that are young and decent,” said Thurman.
