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According to Adam Booth, Josh Kelly’s trainer and manager, the deal for a fight against Jaron “Boots” Ennis is signed, sealed and delivered.
There’s just one detail to confirm.
“I’m just waiting for a date from Eddie [Hearn], who says he’s waiting for a date from DAZN,” Booth told The Ring. “My understanding now is that it looks like early January.”
Although Team Kelly wants to speed up the process, the longer they wait, the more time Kelly has to heal and recover.
After successfully defending his IBF junior middleweight title via unanimous decision against Caoimhin Agyarko on July 25 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Kelly (19-1-1, 9 KOs) underwent minor surgery to repair a broken nose. The 32-year-old Brit was expected to make a full recovery within eight weeks.
While a date continues to be sorted out, Booth will prep his fighter for arguably the most difficult assignment of his career.
Ennis, The Ring’s No. 1-ranked junior middleweight, looked spectacular in his last appearance.
The 29-year-old switch-hitter dismantled Xander Zayas on June 27 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, dropping him three times before eventually stopping him in the seventh round. In doing so, Ennis snatched Zayas’ WBA and WBO 154-pound titles.
The Philadelphia native made it clear to Hearn, whose Matchroom Boxing promotes Ennis and Kelly, that he wants to collect more titles.
Sebastian Fundora, ranked No. 3 by The Ring, was Ennis’ preferred option. However, the 6-foot-6 southpaw will defend his WBC crown against Ermal Hadribeaj, his mandatory challenger, on October 17 at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.
Booth, of course, knows that Ennis (36-0, 32 KOs, 1 NC) is attempting to win every world title at 154 pounds. But he also knows that Kelly has those same aspirations.
So, with both sides ready to get it on, Kelly’s longtime trainer is hoping they’ll get a clearer picture of when it will happen sooner rather than later.
“We’ve had our terms agreed for the ‘Boots’ fight for some time,” Booth said. “From what I’ve been told, he has agreed to his terms as well. It’s literally waiting for DAZN to give Matchroom a date. It’s frustrating, but that’s the nature of the business.”
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