Here's my 2025 ballot for the International Boxing Hall of Fame. I selected Gennadiy Golovkin, Santos Laciar, Gilberto Roman and Pongsaklek Wonjongkam.
I have a new "How to Watch Boxing" column in the November edition of Ring Magazine. The column is about how to take away the jab and features perspectives from trainers Robert Garcia and Stephen "Breadman" Edwards. The magazine is available on newsstands now.
During the opening moments of Saturday's Jaron "Boots" Ennis-Uisma Lima 154-lb. bout, Boots fought in the orthodox stance. After a minute, he switched to southpaw. As soon as the switch happened, Lima started tagging him with straight left hands. But then Boots returned fire and they traded heavy artillery. In an exchange, Boots landed an enormous, winging left hand that instantly stunned Lima. Boots then followed up with a perfectly placed right hook to the chin, one that didn't even have his full force behind it; Lima hit the canvas. Lima would go down again later in the round and the fight was quickly stopped after Lima made it to his feet a second time, with Ennis unloading as Lima was trapped on the ropes.
That first knockdown sequence illustrated the multiple facets that Boots possesses in the ring. He showed the ferocity of a big puncher, but the knockdown blow occurred from an almost surgically precise right hook. Even in a moment when bombs were flying, Ennis had the focus and poise to drop the perfect punch. That right hook more than anything else in the short fight impressed me the most; that was a finisher's punch. A lot of people can hurt a guy, but how many can take a little steam off a shot during a period of high adrenaline to land the coup de grace?
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| Photo courtesy of Matchroom Boxing |
I have one important question regarding Boots and his ability to switch stances: Is he Terence Crawford or Danny Jacobs? By that I mean, did he switch because he saw something or knew something, like Crawford does, or was he switching just to switch, which is always a criticism I had of Jacobs. Just because one can switch, it doesn't make it the right move.
Boots spends a lot of time fighting in both stances. To this point I'm not sure which stance is his best and I'm curious to know if he has a level of understanding about his own strengths and weaknesses. When evaluating Crawford, I always knew that he turned lefty when he wanted to be more defensively responsible. But I have yet to discern Ennis' patterns. Is he a gifted athletic puncher who can do all sorts of crazy stuff in the ring, or is he a boxing master who understands what will and will not work for himself or his opponents? Can one be both?
To be determined.
***
Every now and then you'll hear someone in boxing, usually a fighter, but occasionally a trainer, proudly boast that he doesn't watch tape of an opponent. Although these bold pronouncements are often met with disbelief and ridicule, I believe that there is a little something to this method of madness. I will never advocate for not studying an opponent, but make no mistake, the tape can play tricks on an observer and lead to a false sense of security.
Case and point, in Saturday's Alexis Barriere-Guido Vianello fight, Vianello fought in a style that I had not seen him ever utilize in the ring. Barriere was supposed to be the puncher in the fight and Vianello had often featured his legs, hand speed and craftiness to win his big fights.
Yet on Saturday, Vianello fought as the flat-footed slugger. He didn't concede the pocket or rely on movement. He methodically marched forward behind big shots. It's like he suddenly morphed into Anthony Joshua or Martin Bakole. He was there to take Barriere out.
There's no doubt that Barriere and his team were spooked. Barriere, usually a front-foot slugger himself, had to resort to being a counterpuncher. And while he got some good work done, especially in the third round, by the fourth, he was sent to the canvas after a flurry of power punches. One round later, Vianello ended things with a cuffing right hand.
It's unusual to see a fighter at the advanced stages of his career utilize a new style and do so with such success (Fury in the second Wilder fight is another recent example). Yet Vianello shocked Barriere with his audacious play. Vianello looked like a completely different fighter in the ring and made a big statement in the heavyweight division.
What we thought we knew about Vianello was wrong. The tape can often paint an incomplete picture, an important point to remember about matchups. There is often a wide gulf of uncertainty in how a fight may play out. For the "styles make fights" crowd, here was an example of a guy completely junking his past style and obliterating all conventional wisdom about what was supposed to occur in this matchup. Just remember, we often know far less about boxing than we think we do.
***
Although Ennis-Lima was mocked online after the card ended as an example of poor matchmaking, I'll say this: the event played well for the Philadelphia crowd in the arena. They loved how ferociously Boots went after and finished Lima. That heavyweight fight between Barriere and Vianello produced the goods. They loved the daredevil performance from Philly's Dennis Thompson in his win against Sean Diaz. Another Philadelphian, Tahmir Smalls, produced a couple of oohs and aahs from the crowd during his competitive fight against Jose Roman.
It was a boisterous crowd on Saturday night and they got their entertainment. Sure, in a perfect world, Lima would have put up more resistance. But the Philadelphia fighters showed up and delivered. Boots was electric. Thompson and Smalls were easily in against their best opponents, and both performed well. If Boots-Lima had followed a drab, one-sided undercard, I bet the feeling in the crowd would have been much different. But those in Philly received value for their money. They went home happy.
Here's something unusual from an upstart boxing promoter: "Before we started putting on fights, we wanted to build a facility, specifically for boxing." But this is the vision of Red Owl Boxing's President, Gabriel Fanous, who has built two boxing arenas, one in Ontario, Canada and another in Houston. With a background in entrepreneurship, investments and building sports facilities, Fanous believed that in order to be successful, the typical model for mid-tier boxing promoters needed to change.
If you look around boxing, in
whatever part of the world where you may live, the sport is populated with dreamers
and schemers. There seems to be an unending supply of those who want to get
into boxing promotion. They have lots of ideas. But what
so many of them don't have is financial capitalization. So, what they are left
with is lukewarm venue deals where if they are fortunate enough to pack the
house, they might realistically break even or make a couple of bucks. It's not
a sustainable way to make a living in the sport.
"Unlike other people who
decided to get into the sport," said Fanous, "the first thing I
decided to do was build a facility. Let's have a place where boxing lives.
Let's get rid of the variables that need to be involved in putting on a show in
different places. Let's try to give fans a consistent experience. Let's build
it for television and broadcast. Let's have a fun vibe in there. Let's invest
in infrastructure of the sport."
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| Gabriel Fanous (right) with former champion Shane Mosley Photo courtesy of Red Owl Boxing |
Fanous understands the value of
real estate, of ownership, and of control. With his Owl's Nest in Houston, he
has designed an arena to provide a first-class experience for those attending
his shows and watching on TV. The venue was built to maximize the boxing
experience. As part of the construction of the facility, he included plans for
where television cameras should be placed and what could provide the best
viewing environment and atmosphere for fans at the venue.
And the ownership is important
too. With a venue in hand, he could one day sell naming rights. He could rent
it out for public or private events. With ownership, he has control over
catering and vendors. He can capture various revenue
streams that wouldn't be open to those who rely on renting a venue for
boxing.
It's not that Fanous views his
approach as the way to make untold millions in the sport. He's OK if he breaks
even in boxing for the time being; he has other businesses. But what he believes in is giving
himself a chance to succeed with a firm belief that the current regional boxing
model is broken.
Now armed with two arenas, a
broadcast deal with DAZN, and a belief in 50-50 fights, Fanous is starting to
put his vision for Red Owl Boxing to work.
How about another new idea?
On each Red Owl card, he has
three types of fights. The first is an Introduction Fight, where a skilled
up-and-coming fighter is making his or her pro debut to the larger boxing
public. The second fight is the "Redemption Fight," which is a take
on the concept of the crossroads matchup. These fights will involve talented
boxers who are coming off a loss or have had recent setbacks in the
sport. The third fight is the "Crowning Fight," where two
advanced prospects or young pros are vying to become a legitimate contender in
a given division.
With the branding of these three fight types,
Fanous is trying to solve a problem for developmental boxing programming. The question he is trying to answer for viewers is why
should they care about these fights or fighters? Fanous' answer is to
communicate with boxing fans about expectations for every fight. He believes
that the branding of these matches will help set the stakes for what will
follow on the broadcast.
"Everything that we're
trying to do," said Fanous, "is to build consistency...in fan
experience, in branding, in organization, and the people that we choose to work
with."
Another word that Fanous often says is "evolve." This applies to boxing as a sport and his own efforts as a promoter and provider of boxing content. Fanous looks at the current boxing media landscape and sees change and uncertainty everywhere. The sport is going through rapid disruptions in distribution and content providers.
Fanous believes that
boxing needs to do a much better job of ensuring a compelling experience at an
arena and on a broadcast, especially for smaller cards. And if you've been
following Red Owl's fight cards on DAZN, you will notice a constant evolution in
their broadcasts. The camera work is crisper. The audio and lighting are
better. The broadcast pacing feels more organic.
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| The Owl's Nest in Houston Photo courtesy of Red Owl Boxing |
Red Owl continues to tinker with its presentation. Fanous acknowledges that he's still learning. He incorporates feedback in terms of how to get to the next level. He has given a lot of runway to his matchmaker, James Bartley, in terms of making fights and identifying boxers who would be good candidates for longer-term deals.
Fanous is also really enjoying
what he's been able to build with Red Owl. "It's something that's so much
fun," he said. "To have this platform to provide opportunities for
people in their life to change their circumstances, it's a blessing. I've been
blessed in my life. I'm just trying to pay it forward and do it in a fun
way."
Although Red Owl is still only a
few years old, Fanous is starting to look farther afield. On Friday, Red Owl
will present a boxing card in Commerce California, at the Commerce Casino. The
headliner pits undefeated lightweight Deonte Brown (16-0) against Grimardi
Machuca (17-2). Other notables on the card include the rugged South California-based club
fighter Saul Sanchez and the debut of U.S. Olympian Rashida Ellis.
Fanous openly admits that he may
be looking to replicate his model in other cities, which means building from
the ground up, and in his case, that also means literally building.
"I'm trying to build a
brand, said Fanous. "Nike is a brand. Apple is a brand. You walk into any
Apple store around the world and you know what it looks like. You know what to
expect. If I'm fortunate to build another Owl's Nest, let's say Philly for
example, it's going to look exactly the same as the Houston one. I want people
to recognize our brand. I want them to know what they are going to get. We need
consistency in the experience and with fans' expectations. That's my vision for Red Owl Boxing."
Something strange was afoot on
Saturday afternoon in the Point Breeze section of Philadelphia: Boxing was
actually promoting itself effectively. Jaron "Boots" Ennis held an exhibition at the
Ralph Brooks Playground and a couple of hundred boxing fans turned out.
With a DJ blasting music, a ring
set up in the center of the park, sponsors giving out energy drinks, and local
gyms donating their trainers and equipment for the day, the air was festive. Before any of
the professional fighters arrived, members of the Front Street Gym held an
exhibition in the ring and on the playground. Kids of all sizes were going
through punching drills, hitting the heavy and speed bags, and practicing footwork
exercises. Old-timers dressed in suits were on the periphery. Other fans hung
out in the bleachers or conversed on the playground waiting for the star of the show to arrive. It was a
reminder that Philadelphia is a genuine fight town.
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| Photo by Adam Abramowitz |
On October 11th, Ennis will make his 154-lb. debut after becoming unified champion at welterweight. He'll be fighting Uisma Lima, a little-known Portuguese-based fighter who's on a decent run in the division. This will be Boots' third fight at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, after successful outings against David Avanesyan and Karen Chuckhadzhian. Although Boots had spent years fighting away from his hometown, his Philly fights have drawn very well. While Lima's relatively anonymous status won't help sell tickets, events like Saturday's will.
In talking with a Matchroom
Boxing official on Saturday, the whole exhibition on Saturday cost somewhere
around $10,000, and it was money well spent. In attendance were tons of people
from the neighborhood, boxing fans from around the area, neighborhood outreach
representatives from Comcast Spectacor (they own Wells Fargo Center),
members of USA Boxing, the Pennsylvania athletic commission, representatives
from city council and state senate offices, and others who help form the greater boxing
infrastructure in the city. It was a great way to boost visibility for Boots'
upcoming fight and raise the profile for boxing in the city.
About an hour after the event
started, the professional boxers started rolling in. Dennis "The Quiet
Storm" Thompson, a 7-0 featherweight prospect signed to Boots Promotions, was the first to enter the ring. He'll be appearing on the card in a few weeks.
So too will Jesse Hart, a Philly fighter and longtime contender in the sport at super middleweight
and light heavyweight. Hart, while not showing his skills in the ring on
Saturday, took the mic and displayed a genuine enthusiasm for reigniting his career.
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| Boots displaying his skills Photo by Adam Abramowitz |
Boots then arrived on the scene, signing dozens of autographs on gloves and tee shirts before entering the ring. He had a line of well-wishers with photographers snapping his every move. Before he started to go through his brief training session, he was presented with the Ring Magazine belt for his accomplishments at welterweight and you could sense his pride as he held it in his hands. In an unscripted moment, his father and trainer, Bozy, held the belt and said, "It's heavy!"
Boots, wearing a sweatshirt on a
muggy September afternoon, then went through a brief training session where he
displayed his movement and quick combinations while Bozy and his brother Derek (better known as Pooh) took turns holding up the
sticks. He addressed the crowd and urged people to support him on fight
night.
The event lasted just two hours
or so and it was a smashing success. Of course, this begs the question as to why these events don't occur more often. Boxing is very
vibrant in Philadelphia, as it is in many other cities across the U.S., and yet
there's no escaping the reality that the sport doesn't frequently connect with
the public as it should. Events like Saturday's help reinforce that boxing
still holds a lot of appeal, and not just to well-heeled ticket buyers and
sponsors. At its core, boxing is about the neighborhood gym, providing kids with opportunities, and teaching important skills about self-defense and life.
The sport of boxing gets a lot of things wrong, and often on a daily basis. But let's remember that boxing can be a force for good. It can be grown. It can still connect. But the effort must be made to help cultivate a following. Saturday was a reminder that not all is lost. There are still a few who get it. I wish that they would get it on a more consistent basis, but that conversation is for another time.
