He can move forward aggressively, can work the body well and knows how to end a night early. There’s a lot to like about WBO and WBA junior middleweight champion Xander Zayas. This Saturday night in Brooklyn, however, Zayas will be defending his belts against a man some consider one of the best pound for pound fighters on earth. While there’s no doubt Zayas will benefit from the support of the passionate Puerto Rican fans who will surely be there to cheer on the San Juan native, Jaron “Boots” Ennis is nothing if not a uniquely talented knockout machine.
While the undefeated Zayas has stopped all but ten of his 23 opponents, the undefeated Ennis has stopped all of his 35 opponents save for four. There’s a reason Philly native Ennis has been seen as an heir to Terence Crawford’s throne as the king among all his peers. Zayas, however, is entering the Barclay’s Center this weekend to win, not just collect a check. The media, however – though respectful – doesn’t appear to hold defending champion Zayas in the same regard as the respected Ennis.
Although he’s seen as an excellent opponent for Ennis, you won’t see a whole lot of articles online about the 23 year old Zayas, other than those who present him as the “opponent” on Saturday evening. Not that Xayas cares.
“We found out the fight with Virgil Ortiz and boots Ennis was falling apart,” he told Ariel Helwani, “so I contacted Top Rank and told them I wanted that fight.” This is clearly not a man whose eager to marinate a potential good fight to death. “Why not now?” he asked rhetorically. “Everybody’s so afraid to put their records on the line, to put their belts on the line. I want to consider myself the best in the sport. I’ve got to fight the best, I’ve got to beat the best.”
It’s not something that’s been popular to say in recent years (though Helwani correctly brings up the fact that things might be changing), but Xayas doesn’t want to be like his peers. He wants to ride above them. And in order to do that he’ll have to best the formidable Ennis. While there’s roughly a five year age difference between the two fighters, the 23 year old Xayas feels the time is right. And for those who disagree? He plans to prove them wrong this weekend in Brooklyn.
“I’ve been bullied enough early in my life,” Xayas said to Yahoo, “and it’s why I say he (Ennis) is dealing with someone and something he knows nothing about. He has no idea what he is walking into.”
In a very real sense, the man still feels like the young boy who has to defend himself. “That little 5-year-old still lives deep down inside me,” he said. “He fights against bullies every day. Never test a kid who has been bullied. Boxing put me where I am today.”
And where Xeyas is happens to be on the edge of smashing success for crushing failure. Frankly, it’s the kind the of moment boxers live for. After all, Xayas will be the toast of boxing if he wins Saturday night. And therein lies the appeal or one of the appeals of this weekend’s matchup. There’s a chance a fighter who is widely unknown – titles are not keys to fame – can best a person who is an all but legitimate star. Both men are good, and it’s possible that anything can happen. It’s actually the kind of fight to get excited over. Again, it’s still not too frequently that we see two of the best going at each other without drowning in marination first.
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Source: www.boxinginsider.com