HOLLYWOOD, California — The welterweight title unification bout between WBA champion Eimantas Stanionis and IBF belt holder Jaron Ennis has the ingredients to be fight-of-the-year special.

Ennis (33-0, 29 KOs), rated No. 1 by The Ring at 147 pounds, and Stanionis (15-0, 9 KOs), rated No. 2, will also be fighting for the vacant Ring title on April 12 at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

The iconic venue has hosted legendary figures and unforgettable fights, including the second and third chapters of the rivalry between Arturo Gatti and Micky Ward.

Stanionis envisions an all-out slugfest against Ennis that would make his predecessors proud.

“I don't know what people are expecting. I can promise from my side I will give it my all,” Stanionis told The Ring in an interview following a training session with career-long coach Marvin Somodio at the Wild Card Boxing gym in Los Angeles.

“Maybe it will be a war like Gatti and Ward. I am a very competitive guy, and I love competition. We'll find out on April 12.”

Oddsmakers don’t deem the fight to be anywhere near 50-50. According to DraftKings, Ennis is a -650 betting favorite, and Stanionis is a +450 underdog. Perhaps sportsbooks just haven’t seen enough of the 2016 Lithuanian Olympian Stanionis in recent years.

Stanionis has suffered a recent stretch of inactivity, having fought only once since April 2022, a 12-round unanimous decision win against Gabriel Maestre in May. Before the Maestre fight, Stanionis was sidelined as he went through the saga of seeing a fight against Vergil Ortiz Jr. get canceled three times in a 15-month span.

“I am just working on myself and not thinking about other things,” said Stanionis. “I like to challenge myself. I'll do my best. I know it's a big task. I am realistic. I know it's not going to be easy for me or him. That's why the No. 1 and No. 2 are fighting.

“I'm not thinking about parades in Lithuania. Everybody loves me there. They know me. I am doing this more for myself and for the kids, who can look up to someone who is setting and achieving goals. When I was growing up, we didn't have professional athletes in boxing. It was just the amateurs and training. I wanted to go to America because it is the Mecca of boxing – all dreams are made here.”