Boots Ennis: Undefeated, Untested, And Undisputed Champion Of Tune-Ups

Boxing has belts for everything. WBA Regular, WBC Franchise, IBF Silver, Diamond, Gold, Plastic. But one belt stands alone, undefeated, unchallenged, undisputed:

Jaron “Boots” Ennis is the Champion of Tune-Ups.

He has unified it, defended it, and carried it with pride. If tune-ups were a sanctioned division, Boots would already be a three-time undisputed champion. If mismatches had rankings, he’d be pound-for-pound number one.

The Résumé Nobody Fears

Custio Clayton. Karen Chukhadzhian. Roiman Villa. Cody Crowley.

Good fighters, respectable pros — but these aren’t legacy fights. That’s not a résumé, that’s an undercard. These are names you scroll past on BoxRec while looking for the main event.

Boots’ toughest opponent so far has been the BoxRec search filter.

At this rate, Matchroom should rebrand itself as Tune-Up Room. And with performances this soft, “Boots” is starting to look more like “Sandals.”

Leaving Greatness Off the Mountain

And then Boots decided to rewrite history. Asked for his Mount Rushmore, he left out Terence Crawford — the man who became two-time undisputed, destroyed Spence, and beat Canelo in one of the greatest performances in sports history.

Instead, Boots said:

“My opinion is, I like Roy Jones, Floyd Mayweather, and Pernell Whitaker. I’m liking Sugar Ray Leonard. I’m watching a little bit of Sugar Ray Leonard and James Toney. They’re my top guys that I’ve been watching.”

(Source: Boxing News 24)

Translation: the undisputed champion of tune-ups just dismissed the undisputed champion of greatness.

Boots talks Mount Rushmore. Crawford is Mount Rushmore.

Let’s be clear — Boots shouldn’t even put Crawford’s name in his mouth. Not when Crawford carved his face on the mountain of immortality, and Boots is still chiseling his on the heavy bag.

Honestly, Boots owes Canelo a refund. Sparring him clearly didn’t prepare Canelo. He sparred a BOOTSleg version of Crawford.

Crawford Earned It. Boots Streamed It.

Crawford crossed oceans to win his first title. He unified 140, became undisputed at 147, beat every style imaginable, and then dared to jump two divisions to dethrone Canelo.

Boots? He streamed Sugar Ray Leonard highlights on his phone and defended his Tune-Up Title against Cody Crowley.

Bud is sculpting masterpieces in oil; Boots is still finger-painting in the corner.

The Lima Statement

And now comes the latest chapter: Boots’ 154 debut against Uisma Lima. Ranked #9 by the IBF and WBA, but unknown to 99% of the boxing world.

Boots promises to “make a statement.” Against Lima. Yes, the pressure is real — not the pressure of facing Crawford, not the pressure of facing Vergil Ortiz, but the pressure… of a tune-up.

That’s like LeBron vowing to “make a statement” at preseason basketball.

Fans asked for steak. Eddie Hearn served microwaved hot dogs.

If Boots Were Cut From Crawford’s Cloth

Crawford’s cloth is cut from risk. When he moved up, he fought killers. When he unified, he unified against champions. When he was frozen out, he smashed the door down.

If Boots were made of the same material, his first fight at 154 would be Vergil Ortiz. That’s what Crawford would have done.

Instead, we’re getting Lima. Which is like saying, “I’m going to prove myself in the co-main event of a Tuesday night ShoBox card.”

The Champion Nobody Wants to Be

Boots Ennis has talent. That’s not in question. But until he faces someone who matters, he’ll remain king of a division nobody respects: the Tune-Up League. His crown is cardboard, his throne is invisible, his belt is imaginary.

So let’s put it in writing:

Jaron “Boots” Ennis — undefeated, untested, and undisputed Champion of Tune-Ups.

Crawford belongs to history. Boots belongs to Netflix — with Tune-Up Season 2: Boots vs Lima streaming soon.