Rising welterweight Jaron “Boots” Ennis (pictured) will face his most difficult test in pursuit of a world title shot as he headlines his first Showtime Championship Boxing against former junior welterweight title holder Sergey Lipinets. Thesy meet in a twelve-round, crossroads fight on Saturday, April 10th at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. in a Premier Boxing Champions event. In the co-feature, a pair of hard-hitting welterweights square off as Eimantas Stanionis takes another step up in class, this time against Thomas Dulorme in a twelve-round WBA eliminator. The telecast opener features a world title bout as IBF 115-pound champ Jerwin “Pretty Boy” Ancajas (32-1-2) defends his title against Mexico's Jonathan Rodríguez (22-1).
Ennis (26-0, 24 KOs) is the latest outstanding Philadelphia fighter. He combines boxing skills with natural power in both hands. After numerous appearances on ShoBox: The New Generation, the 23 year-old Ennis has graduated to headlining his first Showtime Championship Boxing telecast. Heading into his last bout against Chris van Heerden, Ennis was riding a streak of 16 consecutive knockouts. That streak ended when the fight was stopped after the first round due to an accidental clash of heads that opened a severe cut on the forehead of Van Heerden.
“I’m excited to be back April 10th,” said Ennis. “This is the type of fight I’ve been waiting for. I can’t wait to perform and put on a beautiful show. Y’all will see something special out of me come fight night. I’m excited to be the main event. It’s time for me to shine!”
The 31-year-old Lipinets (16-1-1, 12 KOs) established himself as a force at 140 pounds when he won the IBF world title with a victory over Akihiro Kondo in 2017. He lost the title to four-division champion Mikey Garcia in 2018 and then moved up to welterweight in 2019. He served notice that he would be a contender at welterweight when he scored a stoppage victory over ex-140-pound champion Lamont Peterson in 2019. Born in Kazakhstan and representing Russia, Lipinets now lives in Woodland Hills, California and is trained by Joe Goossen. Lipinets is coming off a hard-fought majority draw against undefeated Custio Clayton in October 2020.
“Training is grueling and I’m working hard with Joe Goossen to be at my best on fight night,” said Lipinets. “We have a tough, young fighter in Ennis who thinks I’m a stepping stone for him. But sometimes stepping stones trip you up, and I’ll be doing my best to trip him up on April 10. I’m just doing my best to get prepared for what I expect to be a dog fight. Every fan that knows boxing knows that this is going to be a real war and worth tuning in for. I expect we’ll be fighting in a phone booth at times, but I also expect him to try to use his reach and fight me at a distance at times. But no matter what he does, I’ll be ready for him.”
Stanionis (16-3 including the World Series of Boxing) has put together a string of victories. He enters the match against Dulorme with four consecutive knockout victories. The 26 year-old from Lithuania, who now lives and trains in California, picked up three solid victories in 2019, beating Samuel Figueroa via unanimous decision and scoring early stoppages against Julio Cesar Sanchez and Evincii Dixon. He then put the 147-pound division on notice with back-to-back dominating main event performances in November and December 2020, when he notched ninth-round knockouts over Justin DeLoach and Janer Gonzalez respectively.
“This is my first time fighting on Showtime and it feels like a dream come true,” said Stanionis. “Dulorme is experienced and has been a good fighter for a long time. On paper, this is my toughest fight, but I’m ready. I’ll be prepared for whatever he brings. With our styles, it’s going to be a war. I’m ready to fight right now. Somebody is going down and no matter what happens, the fans are going to win.”
The 31 year-old Dulorme (25-4-1, 16 KOs) has amassed a solid resume at 140 and 147 pounds during his career, climbing into the ring with champions Yordenis Ugas, Jessie Vargas and Terence Crawford. Born in Marigot, Guadeloupe but fighting out of and representing Carolina, Puerto Rico, Dulorme rebounded from a loss to Crawford for a 140-pound title by scoring back-to-back knockouts, followed by a decision loss to top welterweight Yordenis Ugas. He is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Jamal James in his last fight in August.
“I’m very excited for this fight on April 10th,” said Dulorme. “I came up short in my last fight for the title, but a win against Stanionis will put me right back into the position I want. He’s young and strong, but I have a lot more experience and I will show it in the ring and it will lead me to victory.”
Representing the Philippines, Ancajas (32-1-2, 22 KOs) was only 15 years old when he was spotted by boxing legend Manny Pacquiao. The young fighter blossomed under Pacquiao’s guidance, becoming the first champion under Pacquiao’s promotional banner when he outpointed McJoe Arroyo for the IBF 115-pound title in September 2016. The 29-year-old southpaw hasn’t lost since and will be making the ninth defense of his title when he faces Rodríguez. In his most recent outing in December, Ancajas stopped Miguel Gonzalez in six rounds.
“I am really looking forward to returning to the ring on April 10th for my first fight on Showtime,” said Ancajas. “Everybody knows the great rivalry between the Philippines and Mexico, and I look forward to adding another explosive fight to that history. Fight fans know where all the action fights are right now, and that’s the 115-pound division. I’m thankful for this opportunity and I plan to make the most of it.”
Mexico’s Rodríguez (22-1, 16 KOs) was given the nickname “Titan” because of his prodigious power. Since suffering a disputed split-decision loss to Jose Martin Estrada Garcia in March 2018, the 25-year-old has won six straight, including a first-round knockout victory over Julian Yedras last December. He will be making his U.S. debut against Ancajas.
“This is the opportunity of a lifetime for me,” said Rodríguez. “When I started boxing, it was my dream to fight for the world title and win it. On April 10, all of my dreams and hard work will come true when I hear ‘and the new IBF champion of the world.’”
