Jaron “Boots” Ennis has broken into The Ring’s updated pound-for-pound rankings following his seventh-round stoppage of Xander Zayas on Saturday night to unify the WBA and WBO junior middleweight titles.
The publication placed Ennis at No. 9 in its latest top-10 list, one spot ahead of Oscar Collazo. Naoya Inoue retained the No. 1 position, followed by Oleksandr Usyk, Shakur Stevenson, Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez, David Benavidez, Dmitry Bivol, Junto Nakatani and Devin Haney.
Ennis’ inclusion comes after one of the biggest victories of his career. After losing the opening rounds against the unbeaten champion Zayas, he steadily took control with sharp right hands and combinations before scoring a seventh-round knockdown. Trainer Javiel Centeno halted the fight moments later, giving Ennis, 29, a stoppage victory and two world titles at 154 pounds.
The updated rankings immediately created debate among boxing fans. Many questioned Shakur Stevenson’s position at No. 3 despite his recent move to the light welterweight division, while others argued ‘Boots’ should already rank ahead of Haney following his latest championship victory.
Ennis (36-0, 32 KOs) has now won world titles in two weight classes and extended his unbeaten record with another statement performance. His victory over Zayas is the strongest win on his resume at junior middleweight and further strengthened his case among boxing’s elite fighters.
The Ring updates its pound-for-pound rankings periodically rather than after every major event, making Ennis’ immediate entry into the top 10 a notable endorsement following Saturday’s performance.
With Boots now holding two belts in a talent-loaded junior middleweight division, unification fights against the remaining champions represent his next major challenge.
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Last Updated on 2026/06/29 at 3:08 PM
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