Xander Zayas Vs. Jaron Ennis Predictions

Xander Zayas and Jaron Ennis meet tonight at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn — and two unbeaten records cannot both survive the night.

Zayas defends his unified WBA and WBO junior middleweight titles against a man who has been the most avoided fighter in boxing for the better part of three years. Ennis arrives at 154 pounds with 31 knockouts from 35 fights, a unified welterweight title already on his résumé, and a finishing rate that makes every fight he takes feel like a potential stoppage regardless of the opponent's credentials.

The champion has earned his position honestly. Zayas claimed the vacant WBO strap last July with a win over Jorge Garcia, then travelled to San Juan in January and unified against Abass Baraou on hostile ground — a result that confirmed he is not simply a product of careful matchmaking. He is 23-0, technically polished, and fighting in front of a Brooklyn crowd that will make the arena feel like home territory regardless of where the formal designation falls.

Predictions

“Man, that’s a tough fight. Especially for Xander at this point in his career, but it shows his heart and his confidence he has in himself. He’s ready to make history for himself, and his country. He’s going to do really well in that fight. But I just think, right now, it’s a little bit too early for him,” Crawford

“Boots’ [is] a bad motherf**ker. This kid [Zayas] is about to get ruined. He ain’t ready. He’s a good fighter, but he’s not there yet,” James Toney

“Respect to Xander, hellavu young fighter with the heart of a lion for accepting this fight. We need more fighters like him in boxing, win or lose, he like that.

“Boots different tho, he’s the hardest fighter to deal with at that weight IMO,” Shakur Stevenson

“I think that, stylistically, it’s a great match-up. I think that Boots is very, very talented, he is in his prime, obviously. He is facing a guy who knows how to use his distance and throws hard punches, combinations, he has the will to win, this is going to be a great fight. I don’t know who is going to win, it is tough to call but you might have to give the edge to Boots, just because he is on a roll with his past opponents and the way that he has been handling them. Stylistically, I think that I would have to give him a little edge, but I do love Xander,” Oscar De La Hoya