Ryan Garcia Sets His Sights on the Top Dog: Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis

Ryan Garcia is targeting the big dog, IBF welterweight champion Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, after defeating the not-so-hard-hitting Devin Haney last Saturday night in Brooklyn, New York.

From Pillows to Nuclear Power

This is a huge shift in competition for the 25-year-old Garcia (25-1, 20 KOs) would be going from the pillow-fisted Haney (31-1, 15 KOs) to the nuclear-powered punches from Boots Ennis (31-0, 28 KOs). “Alright, let’s run it with Boots,” Ryan Garcia said.

Boots would be a dangerous upgrade to Haney, who couldn’t knock out a butterfly with one of his best punches.

Reasons Why Ryan Wants Boots

• Genuine Ambition: It’s possible that Ryan feels he’s ready to fight the true best in the sport, and Boots represents the best at 147. Ryan’s victory over Haney may be triggering this move, believing that he’s ready to take on the elite-level fighters and not the manufactured fighters, which some fans feel Haney is a classic example of.
• The Mega-Money Fight: A Ryan vs. Boots Ennis clash would be a huge PPV event with tons of cold hard cash available for Kingry. Is Ryan motivated for the money he can make fighting Boots? It’s a fight that will take Ryan’s bank account to another level, and make Boots a bigger star.
• Less Fallout From Loss: By taking a high-risk fight against Boots, Ryan Garcia would face less backlash if he loses. He would be a tremendous underdog with nothing expected of him.

Is This a Real Challenge or a Publicity Stunt?

I don’t know if Ryan (25-1, 20 KOs) is serious about his wish to fight Boots Ennis or if this is just a ploy to get attention from fans and the media.

We’ll find out soon if Ryan is just name-dropping to get more attention in his moment of glory from his upset victory over Haney.

Unlike Haney, who many fans feel is a weight bully who has built his career on carefully selecting his opponents, choosing a mix of weaker punchers and older fighters to build his inflated resume, Boots Ennis is the genuine article.

Ennis, 26, has actual talent and is capable of dominating against quality opposition without needing extreme weight manipulation or cherry-picking for him to win.