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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 27: Jaron 'Boots' Ennis celebrates his WBO and WBA World Super-Welterweight title bout victory against Xander Zayas at Barclays Center on June 27, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Cris Esqueda/Getty Images)
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Jaron “Boots” Ennis versus Josh Kelly is a premier fight in the 154-pound division as much for the matchup it presents as it is for the matchup it may precede. While Ennis brings in the WBA and WBO world titles and Kelly has the IBF belt, fans will not be able to resist looking ahead to the winner facing WBC 154-pound champion Sebastian Fundora.
While most will favor Ennis in this fight, Kelly is used to being an underdog and accustomed to being counted out. The fight is fascinating from a stylistic standpoint as well as from a stakes perspective. Here’s everything we know so far about this super welterweight battle set to take place in February in Atlanta. Let’s talk boxing.
Jaron Ennis vs. Josh Kelly Key Facts
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Fight | Jaron Ennis vs. Josh Kelly |
| Date | Saturday, Feb. 27, 2027 |
| Venue | State Farm Arena, Atlanta |
| Broadcast | TNT and truTV (U.S.); DAZN (U.S. and worldwide) |
| Start time | Not yet announced |
| Titles at stake | WBA and WBO (Ennis), IBF (Kelly) super welterweight |
| Ennis’ record | 36-0, 32 KOs |
| Kelly’s record | 19-1-1, 9 KOs |
| Ennis’ last fight | TKO 7 over Xander Zayas, June 27, 2026, Brooklyn |
The bout is part of The Fight, the joint TNT Sports and DAZN series, and Matchroom has opened pre-sale registration ahead of the general ticket release.
Beating Kelly won’t do as much for Ennis’s overall reputation as his victory over Xander Zayas did. What it will do is prove that he is serious about unification at 154 pounds. It’ll give him three of the four belts in the division, which would make him the A-side of a potential fight with Fundora.
Fundora, who knocked out Keith Thurman in March, kept his WBC belt on Oct. 17 when he stopped Ermal Hadribeaj with one second left in the 12th round in Las Vegas. Afterward, he named Ennis and Kelly as targets. “I want to go for undisputed in this division,” Fundora said.
Who Holds the 154-Pound World Titles
| Belt | Champion | Record |
|---|---|---|
| WBA | Jaron Ennis | 36-0, 32 KOs |
| WBO | Jaron Ennis | 36-0, 32 KOs |
| IBF | Josh Kelly | 19-1-1, 9 KOs |
| WBC | Sebastian Fundora | 25-1-1, 17 KOs |
Kelly won the IBF title in January with a majority decision over Bakhram Murtazaliev in Newcastle, England. He made his first defense in July, outpointing Caoimhin Agyarko in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
People are going to believe that Kelly will be overmatched because of Ennis’s speed, power and overall athleticism. It’ll be interesting to see whether Kelly can upset the apple cart. It’ll also be interesting to see whether Ennis can handle being such a huge favorite and resist looking ahead to a bigger and potentially tougher fight against Fundora down the line.
Kelly has always been fast, with solid head movement, and persistent. If there is an issue with Ennis’s game, it’s that he can lose focus mid-fight and become frustrated if he’s not getting his way with an opponent. That can and has caused defensive lapses. It happened against Zayas.
However, Ennis is so talented that those instances are rare, but if Kelly can drag him into one of those situations, he can make this fight more interesting.
More 154-Pound Coverage
- Jaron “Boots” Ennis Vs. Xander Zayas: Full Card, Date, Time and How to Watch
- The Tallest Champion in Boxing Faces an Unbeaten Mandatory Who Gives Up 7 Inches
This fight is a solid bout, but it doesn’t figure to be a great one, at least not on paper. But it is necessary to set up the fight that everyone wants to see at 154 pounds. We expect that to be Ennis versus Fundora, but Kelly will have something to say about that in Atlanta.
This article was originally published on Forbes.com
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/jaron-ennis-vs-josh-kelly-043216700.html
