Trainer Greg Hackett says Jermell Charlo would be “one of the best fights” for Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis to take next. He says it, “high-level chess.”
$10 Million or Nothing from Jermell
Ennis’ promoter, Eddie Hearn, has already ruled out Jermell (35-2-1, 19 KOs), predicting that he would price himself out. Charlo, 35, already said his asking price for a fight against ‘Boots’ Ennis (35-0, 31 KOs) or Terence Crawford would be $10 million.
Not even ‘Boots’ Ennis is making that kind of money. The grizzled-looking Jermell’s asking price is a nonstarter right out the gate. He can also forget about Crawford, because he’s not going to be interested. It’s a fight that would bomb on PPV, losing massive money, putting Hearn in a hole for having wasted his time.
Jermell was never a PPV attraction, even when he was still an active fighter. Now, after two years, enjoying the money he made in his lopsided loss to Canelo Alvarez, he’ll be even less of an attraction for PPV.
A fight between ‘Boots’ and the inactive former undisputed junior middleweight champion Jermell Charlo would have to sell big time on DAZN PPV to cover the big purses. It would depend on older fans, not the younger ones, for this event to be successful.
Why Ennis-Charlo Won’t Sell on DAZN
Younger fans have no idea who Jermell is, as he hasn’t fought in ages and has never beaten a notable fighter during his career, other than Erickson Lubin earlier in his career.
“That’s why people love the Charlos, because they’re willing to challenge themselves. That’s what boxing is about,” said coach Greg Hackett to MillCity Boxing, when asked about his thoughts on Jermell Charlo calling out Terence Crawford and Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis.
When have Jermall and Jermell challenged themselves in the last two years? Jermell hasn’t fought since getting a big payday in a one-sided loss to Canelo Alvarez on September 30, 2023. Jermall’s last four fights have come against these fighters: Thomas LaManna, Jose Benavidez Jr.. Juan Macías Montiel y Sergiy Derevyanchenko. How is Jermall changing himself?
Charlo Must Earn His Shot at Boots
“You got to get in there and see who is the best, and that’s what he’s trying to accomplish,” said Hackett about Jermell.
Before Charlo is given a fight against ‘Boots,’ he should have to prove himself against some of the contenders at 154, like two or three of these fighters:
- Israil Madrimov
- Brandon Adams
- Erickson Lubin: *rematch
- Jesus Ramos
- Yoenis Tellez
It’s highly doubtful that Charlo would beat any of those fighters, even the recently beaten Cuban Tellez. A rematch with Lubin would be interesting, as Jermell knocked out the then-22-year-old Lubin on October 14, 2017. Now that Erickson is 30 and a lot more experienced, it would be interesting to see how Charlo deals with him, coming off a two-year layoff.
“Jermell Charlo is going to be one of the best fights for ‘Boots.’ It’s going to be high-level chess. Charlo is going to have to tame ‘Boots,’” said Hackett.
The Final Word
It would be a terrible fight for Ennis to fight Jermell Charlo, as it would reinforce the view that he’s unwilling to take risks with his career. Charlo would be a step down for Ennis from his last overmatched opponent, Uisma Lima. The boxing public would ridicule him for fighting the inactive 35-year-old Jermell, who would be coming back for the payday only.
Ennis vs. Jermell would be a total mismatch and be dead on arrival (DOA) in terms of pay-per-view buys on DAZN. The problem is, the 35-year-old Charlo has been too inactive for the younger boxing fans to know who he is. They’re the ones driving the sport now, not the older ones, who know better than to throw their money away on a fight involving Jermell and Ennis.
They saw that he came only for the paycheck in his fight against Canelo Alvarez, and that he hadn’t won a fight in three years since 2022. Jermell was never that good a fighter, even when he was at the top of his game. He took advantage of a weak period at 154, when the division was barren of talent. Jermell’s loss to Tony Harrison and his 12-round draw against Brian Castano showed how meager his ability is.
Hearn told Pro Boxing Fans that Jermell would “Price himself out straight away” for a fight against Ennis. He’s obviously heard the $10 million price demand that Jermell Charlo has made in a recent interview about what he would want to fight Ennis or Terence Crawford.
The money is for the ball part of a fight against Ennis. It would require Turki Alalshikh’s involvement, and he’s not likely to get involved in that type of fight.
Turki would know from watching Jermell’s last fight two years ago, in his one-sided 12-round unanimous decision loss to Canelo Alvarez on September 30, 2023, that he’d be just coming for the payday. Charlo won’t put in any effort to try to win.
Last Updated on 10/24/2025
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