Jaron Ennis is poised to be boxing's next big star

Boxing's past and present generations will collide on Saturday, Aug. 21 when Manny Pacquiao takes on Errol Spence Jr. Although both fighters deserve the spotlight, the future of the sport belongs to Jaron "Boots" Ennis. The 24-year-old has the tools, talent, and attitude to become the next face of boxing.

Ennis leads the pack of emerging welterweights

"Boots" is a nightmare matchup for even the welterweight elite. He’s a 5’10” fighter who is quick and powerful and has compiled a record of 27-0 with 25 KOs despite being years away from his prime. In his last fight, Ennis backed up his enormous hype when he put on a six-round beating of Sergey Lipinets.

Ennis can hang with the best welterweights today

There's a lot to like about Ennis, particularly with his varied offense and finishing skills. In his last fight, he pulverized Lipinets with countless body shots and didn't take his foot off the gas until the fight was over. It was as surgical as it was savage.

As it stands now, there’s no one outside of Spence or Terence Crawford who would be favored against Ennis. Both Danny and Mikey Garcia are too old and small. Keith Thurman and Shawn Porter’s leaky defense would doom them. There is the chance that Ennis could have an emerging rival in Vergil Ortiz Jr. as the two mature, but "Boots" would have the edge if the two fought today.

Ennis won’t be under the radar much longer

We’ll see Ennis in a big fight soon enough. Though he’s called out Spence and Crawford, he’s more likely to face Porter or WBA champion Yordenis Ugas in the near future.

Fame will come calling the minute Ennis topples a true, elite welterweight, and he'll be more than ready for the additional attention and scrutiny. He’s a personable fighter who carries himself well, and takes care of himself outside the ring, making him easy to root for. His work in the ring speaks for itself, and fans will be clamoring to see more of Ennis as he reaches his prime.