Tyrone McKenna recalls 16-year-old Boots Ennis sparring beatdown

Tyrone McKenna says he considered walking away from boxing after a teenage Jaron "Boots" Ennis took him apart in the gym.

McKenna was a 23-year-old pro when he showed up to spar at the Ennis family gym years ago. Bozy Ennis told him they had no one his weight, so McKenna would work with his son instead. The catch: Boots was 16 and had just two amateur fights on his record. McKenna figured the father wanted the kid roughed up. "I was, like, this guy wants his son beat up for some reason," McKenna told Bad Left Hook. "I said, 'How many fights has he had?' and he said, 'He's only had two amateur fights,' and I went, f*ck, this is insane."

McKenna joins Ennis gym after brutal sparring session

What followed was a one-sided beatdown. McKenna says he could not land a clean shot. "I could not hit this guy for the life of me. He absolutely destroyed me," he said. "After that spar I started contemplating, should I even box anymore? This kid annihilated me, really." McKenna joined the gym on the spot and sparred Ennis for two years. He later fought world champions as a pro, finishing his career 25-6-1 with eight knockouts, but says none came close to the teenage version of Boots.

Ennis is now 28 and unbeaten in 35 fights with 31 stoppages. He holds a welterweight world title and moves up to challenge Xander Zayas for the WBA and WBO straps at 154 pounds on June 27. Zayas brings a 23-0 record with 13 knockouts. It marks the biggest fight of Ennis' career and his second outing at junior middleweight.

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• Bad Left Hook — ‘He absolutely destroyed me’: Tyrone McKenna recalls sparring 16-year-old Boots Ennis