April twelfth - yes, tomorrow - at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. Champion vs. champion unification with the IBF and WBA welterweight world titles at stake, second defense of Ennis and first of Stanionis respectively. Neither man obtained their belt via the conventional "beat the man to become the man" method; they were both elevated to become their respective org's full champions in the wake of Terence Crawford. In the case of the IBF, he was stripped in November of 2023 paving the way for Ennis' promotion from interim champion - and the WBA recognized "regular" champ Stanionis as the full (formerly "Super" champion) last August after Crawford announced his decision to remain at 154 and forfeit all 147lb crown claims. 33-0 (29) vs. 15-0 (9). Somebody's 0 has gotta go! Common opponent: Thomas Dulorme - lost via UD12 to Stanionis in April of 2021, and via KO1 to Ennis in October of that same year. I honestly find myself unable to muster too much excitement for this - probably for the same reason there has been hardly any buzz (this is the only poll thread made on the bout since @Chuck Norris made the official announcement back in January). Reason being: either Ennis will prove a terrible stylistic matchup for Stanionis and dominate or, as I suspect, it will be a controversial decision in his favor. As a fan of the Lithuanian, neither prospect really thrills me.
Stanionis is a live underdog IMO. I think he can push Ennis and take him to deep waters. This is the fight that can potentially be a FOTY candidate IMO.
...oh, I definitely think he can push Ennis and make it either a close fight that could go either way on most observers' cards, or even one that everybody feels he deserves outright. I just don't have much faith in him getting the decision he may deserve. It seems the bookmakers feel the same, because in no way should Ennis be that wide a fave if we're not factoring in cookin'.
I think Stanionis will win. I don't understand the Boots hype, he has nothing apart from athleticism and switch-hitting. It looks flashy but he just isn't a skilled boxer. He has also never had an international amateur career, while Stanionis has. That's why I view Stanionis as having the experience advantage here, I don't think Boots has anything that he hasn't seen before. Boots can't judge range well, can't see punches well, and doesn't have layers to his game. If Stanionis was a real puncher I wouldn't even question him winning this fight. I have it 60-40 in Stanionis' favour.
Ennis takes this one by close decision. I don't think Stanionis is good enough to win this fight. While he's good, he's doesn't particularly excel in any area. His pressure is consistent, but his power is Hrgovic level in the welterweight division, which is not good enough. He may pull it out, but I just think Ennis is just a bit better in nearly every aspect.
