LONDON — Super welterweight champions Jaron "Boots" Ennis and Josh Kelly are lined up for a three-belt unification this winter, with promoter Eddie Hearn confirming plans for the fight to land in "either December or very early January." Hearn outlined the timeline during a lengthy interview with Pro Boxing Fans, positioning the Matchroom stablemates for a WBA, WBO and IBF consolidation at 154 pounds.
Kelly's trainer Adam Booth previously told Tris Dixon that both sides had agreed to all terms and were awaiting only a date and venue. With Ennis and Kelly both competing under the Matchroom banner, the promotion faces few obstacles to finalizing the bout.
Ennis (36-0, 32 KO) claimed the WBA title in his 154-pound debut last year with a dominant win over Uisma Lima, then added the WBO belt in June by outgunning Xander Zayas. Kelly (19-1-1, 9 KO) rebuilt after a 2021 defeat to David Avanesyan and a narrow escape against Ishmael Davis, upsetting Bakhram Murtazaliev to win the IBF title in January before turning aside Caiominh Agyarko in his first defense.
A long-discussed grudge match between Ennis and Vergil Ortiz Jr. previously fell apart and has not regained momentum after Ortiz's team settled matters with Golden Boy. Ennis will enter as a heavy favorite against Kelly, with the winner potentially positioned to face the winner of Sebastian Fundora vs Ermal Hadribeaj later this month if alignments between PBC and DAZN allow.