XANDER ZAYAS VS. JARON 'BOOTS' ENNIS LAUNCH PRESS CONFERENCE LIVESTREAM

[0:00] Fetching up on any NFL game is easier than ever before. [0:03] World champions, again! [0:15] The Zone is the home of boxing. [0:17] Really spurs you on, gets you going. [0:19] Let's make history! [0:21] Pure hell! [0:23] There's no way back from this, surely! [0:26] The following program is recommended for those 16 and over, [0:44] as it contains sporting violence, possible bad language, and flashing imagery. [0:54] The judges are ready, the fighters are ready, the boxing world is ready! [0:59] The fighters are ready! [1:02] So aggressive, so focused! [1:10] It all comes down to this! [1:20] Live on The Zone. [1:23] Hello and welcome to the world-famous Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, [1:27] home to the Brooklyn Nets of the NBA. [1:29] However, today, it's a matchroom boxing and top-ranked press conference kickoff [1:34] as Xander Zayas will defend his WBO and WBA World Junior Middleweight titles [1:39] against Jerron Boots Ennis on Saturday, June 27th, live and exclusively on The Zone. [1:46] All right, without further ado, let's get this press conference started with your host, Chris Mannix. [2:26] Well, thank you, Todd, or the voice of Todd, I guess. [2:31] Welcome, everybody, inside the Barclays Center. [2:33] I'm Chris Mannix, part of The Zone broadcast team and your host for this press conference [2:38] to announce the Pursuit of Greatness 154-pound title fight [2:42] between the unified champion Xander Zayas [2:44] and the former unified 147-pound champion Jerron Boots Ennis. [2:49] This is a fight that is everything that you want to see in boxing. [2:54] A 23-year-old champion coming off back-to-back world title fights [2:58] and demanding to face the best in the division [3:02] and a former champion eager to jump into the biggest fights in his new weight class. [3:08] Tickets to this fight are on sale today, right now, so get them while you can. [3:12] And if you can't be here in Brooklyn, you can watch this fight live and exclusively on The Zone. [3:17] Both fighters are up here. A lot to get into with the both of them. [3:21] We've also got a few members of their team up here to speak as well. [3:25] And I want to kick things off with them and start to my right with Todd Dubuff, [3:30] president of Top Rank. [3:32] And Todd, recently Top Rank announced this multi-year partnership with The Zone. [3:35] And right off the bat, you've got your first major event on the calendar. [3:39] This is really exciting. [3:41] You know, we didn't know what was going to happen. [3:43] We knew that there was a big fight that Eddie was working on for Boots. [3:48] And, you know, Xander and his family and everybody were just like, [3:52] let it be us. Let it be us. [3:54] They had all the faith in the world that your fight was going to blow up [3:58] and they were going to step in. [3:59] They just wanted it so bad. [4:01] And, you know, we have a saying in all of you guys that come to our Top Rank events. [4:06] And we did a video a long time ago, and it was called This is Boxing. [4:10] And I'm going to tell you something. [4:11] This fight, this is boxing. [4:14] This is what it's about. [4:15] Young kids in their prime going at it, putting it all on the line. [4:20] And win or lose, they both win. [4:22] That's what makes this sport so great. [4:24] You know, Todd, if you could have a fighter of the last eight months, [4:27] Xander Zayas would probably be number one on that list. [4:30] Back-to-back world championship fights, proved himself to be a top guy at 154. [4:35] This time last year, he was just evolving into a world championship contender. [4:39] What have you seen from him over this last year that's put him in this position? [4:43] I mean, I think we say the same thing about all fighters, but mostly is the confidence, right? [4:48] Like, we got Xander when he was so young. [4:51] He was sitting in my office. [4:52] He's like, Miguel Cotto. [4:54] I just idolized Miguel Cotto. [4:56] But to see him physically mature, to see his intellect in the ring, to get used to the ups and downs. [5:03] And then, obviously, once you win that title, you just expand your horizon. [5:07] You get more confidence. [5:09] And he got so much confidence, he goes out for the boogeyman. [5:12] I mean, the guy that nobody wants to fight. [5:14] And we're not holding him back. [5:15] We're letting the race car grow. [5:17] All right. [5:18] Thank you, Todd. [5:18] Eddie Hearn, been a long road for you to get here. [5:21] You were locked in long negotiations for one fight. [5:25] You turn around. [5:26] You ask Duran to be patient with you as you set up another one. [5:29] And here you are announcing a huge fight for two titles in the 154-pound division. [5:35] How are you feeling that this fight came together? [5:37] Well, I'll be honest with you. [5:38] I still can't believe it. [5:39] I mean, you know, one of the hardest jobs in boxing is to get Duran Boots and his fights. [5:45] Okay. [5:46] So when we signed him, we took him to Philadelphia. [5:49] People said, oh, you know, Boots doesn't sell. [5:52] Don't take him to Philadelphia. [5:53] 15,000 tickets straight off the bat to fight Avanissian. [5:56] Then no one wanted to fight him. [5:58] We had to fight the mandatory. [5:59] Then we pulled it out the bag for the Stanionis fight, the unification. [6:03] Number one versus number two, the Ring Magazine Championship. [6:06] He destroyed him. [6:07] Then I'm like, don't do that. [6:08] Now, all of a sudden, we can't get him to fight. [6:11] Then we finally feel like after we moved to 54, the Virgil Ortiz fight's happening. [6:17] We all know what happened there. [6:18] And all of a sudden, you know, the great news of the DAZN partnership with Top Rank and, you know, we started talking. [6:26] And all of a sudden they said, I think we can make Xander Zayas against Jaron Boots. [6:29] I said, absolutely no chance. [6:33] There is no chance this fight will be made. [6:37] Top Rank won't allow it. [6:38] Xander Zayas is a young, incredible fighter. [6:42] There is no way he will fight Jaron Boots. [6:45] And I'm actually sitting here still in shock that this fight is made. [6:50] And I have to give unbelievable credit to Xander Zayas because you are a great fighter. [6:56] But you must have a massive set of cojones because what you're about to take part in in June 27th is one of the toughest tasks in boxing. [7:04] I mean, I love the heart. [7:05] But I don't know what Bad Bunny did to you. [7:07] He better have the same cojones, too, because I bring him, too. [7:12] Yeah. [7:13] Well, we'll come to that. [7:15] That sounds good. [7:16] That sounds real good. [7:18] Make sure you keep that same energy, though. [7:19] I always keep the same energy, brother. [7:20] Say no more. [7:22] So all of a sudden what you have is what Todd described. [7:26] And these two can go at it in a minute. [7:28] But I want to say thank you to both. [7:29] I know Boots is up for fighting anybody. [7:32] But Xander, well, you know, unbelievable for boxing this fight is made. [7:36] Two of the very best in the sport for the unified 154-pound championship on what will be an electric card with matrim and top-ranked fighters in this building, which I think is an underrated and underused event for boxing. [7:50] We've seen some massive fights over here over the last few years. [7:53] This is going to fill the whole place up, the energy. [7:56] You've got Puerto Rico. [7:57] You've got New York. [7:58] We're going to bring thousands from Philly. [8:01] There's going to be an unbelievable atmosphere. [8:02] But what I will also say to our friends at Top Rank is, you know, we're making so many fights together. [8:09] We've had a bit of a rough start. [8:11] You know, Muratai beat Andy Cruz. [8:13] Navarrete beat Nunes. [8:15] We've actually got two more fights, world championship fights we hope to announce over the coming week. [8:19] But this is very, very different. [8:23] I believe I'm sitting next to the pound-for-pound number one here in Jaron Boots-Hennis. [8:27] And June 27th, we will start the takeover to become undisputed in the 154-pound division. [8:33] Well, let me ask you about that because you were consistent saying you didn't believe Xander would take this fight. [8:38] No. [8:38] You didn't believe he would sign the contract, as they say at the very end. [8:42] He signed it quickly. [8:43] He didn't walk towards this fight. [8:45] He ran towards this fight. [8:46] What do you make of that? [8:47] Do you think he sees something? [8:48] Dangerous. [8:49] I mean, not just dangerous for him, but dangerous for Boots because this kid, he sees it. [8:54] And I don't mean to be disrespectful, calling him a kid. [8:56] He's 23. [8:57] He's one of the hottest young stars in the sport. [9:01] I would be keeping him away from Jaron. [9:03] Like, if I represented Xander Zayas, there is no way I would let him take this fight. [9:09] I'd be saying, listen, we'll go to MSG. [9:10] We'll fill that up. [9:11] We'll do another homecoming fight in Puerto Rico. [9:13] We'll have Bad Bunny singing you out. [9:16] We'll milk it. [9:17] We'll do this. [9:17] We'll move up to middleweight. [9:19] We've got years. [9:21] But this is what boxing needs. [9:23] Like, this is not me being critical. [9:25] This is me saying respect. [9:27] Crazy, but respect. [9:29] And by the way, top rank's it. [9:30] Top rank are very good at moving fighters. [9:31] They don't just allow guys to jump in and gamble. [9:35] They believe in Xander. [9:37] Now, maybe I'm seeing something different. [9:38] In fact, we just ran a vote across social and digital, and it was exactly 50-50 of fans [9:45] picked who's going to win this fight. [9:47] Maybe that's the reality. [9:48] I feel very different because I'm a massive Jerome Boots Ennis fan. [9:51] But as I said, Xander's an unbelievable fire. [9:54] I think this is the future pound-for-pound number one of the sport. [9:57] Can I just interrupt here for one second? [9:59] I actually was thinking that exact same game plan you laid out for Xander's eyes. [10:03] I want to be honest with you. [10:04] I had Bad Bunny. [10:06] I had Madison Square Garden. [10:07] I know that model, all right? [10:09] But I'll tell you what. [10:11] You listen to your guys, right? [10:12] You listen to them. [10:13] And what we do today is we don't say you've got to protect the zero. [10:18] Whatever you do, you go out there and you perform and you perform for the fans [10:22] and you devalue the loss so tomorrow is a better day than today. [10:26] And that's what we did, and we believe in him 100%. [10:28] That's the easy route to take. [10:30] Anybody could go and fill out the MSG or go back to Puerto Rico and fight whoever. [10:35] I wanted to fight whoever they say is the boogeyman. [10:38] Chris, I don't think we need you. [10:39] We're good. [10:40] We'll keep going. [10:41] Best part of my day. [10:42] Let's go to one of your guys here. [10:44] I want to hear from Javier, Javier Centeno. [10:46] D, when Xander comes to you and says, I want to fight Jerron Ennis, [10:51] I want to defend my belts against Boots, what was your reaction? [10:55] Well, you know, initially my reaction was like, you know, I mean, [10:58] he's one of the elite guys in the division. [11:02] You know, why him? [11:05] But Xander sat down and he explained, why him? [11:07] You know, he does see things that I've seen in the past as well. [11:11] And, you know, he just came with that confidence in that I can do this. [11:17] And that's all I needed. [11:19] Oh, give us a little bit of that. [11:20] What was that conversation like where he explained to you what he sees in Jerron Ennis? [11:25] Well, I mean, we've talked about Jerron Ennis in the past and, you know, we've watched his fights. [11:30] We've seen him come along. [11:32] And we've always been in agreement at things that we see that we can take advantage of. [11:37] Of course, I won't, you know, set all that out now. [11:40] But, you know, it was one of those things where, you know, he said, okay, you know what, this is the time. [11:46] Let's go ahead and do it. [11:47] And as a team, we decided to take his back. [11:52] A year ago, he wasn't a world champion. [11:54] What have you seen from him over these last years, specifically these last two fights that make you believe he's ready for this challenge? [12:00] Well, you know, the growth in his boxing IQ has compounded, right? [12:06] You know, one championship after the next, I mean, every fight he's elevated his game. [12:11] And I've seen it in the gym, and he's proven it in the ring. [12:16] So, you know, just that alone gave me that, you know, that feeling that he can get this done. [12:23] All right. [12:24] We're looking forward to that. [12:25] On the other side, Bo Ziennis, I know you've been waiting on pins and needles for Jerron to get his next fight. [12:31] Well, it took you guys 34 fights to become unified at 147. [12:36] Now you've got the opportunity here to do it in one fight or two fights, I guess, at 154. [12:41] You hear a lot of confidence coming from the side of Xander Zayas. [12:44] What's your level of confidence going into this? [12:45] Well, that's the way it's supposed to be. [12:47] You know what I mean? [12:47] He's a good fighter. [12:48] You know what I mean? [12:49] Like Eddie just got from the same. [12:51] But I think he bit off too much. [12:55] That's what I think. [12:56] I think, see, one thing about Bo Ziennis, he can box, and he'll fight you inside. [13:02] So it don't make no difference what way he's coming. [13:04] You know what I mean? [13:05] And also, Bo Ziennis can punch. [13:07] You know what I mean? [13:07] I mean, Xander, a great fighter to me. [13:10] He's a good fighter. [13:11] That's one of my top guys I like. [13:13] You know what I mean? [13:13] But it's going to be a good fight as long as it lasts. [13:17] Remember that. [13:18] As long as it lasts. [13:19] So you think this fight ends in a stoppage? [13:21] It's going to be a stoppage. [13:22] Yes. [13:24] You know, you guys had Virgil Ortiz on your mind for the last couple of months, [13:29] preparing us mentally maybe for that type of style. [13:31] This man over here, like you said, great fighter. [13:33] Very different style than Virgil. [13:35] What is it going to take to win a fight like this? [13:37] Well, I can't give you that information. [13:39] You know what I mean? [13:40] You will see. [13:42] You will see when the time comes, right? [13:45] Like I said, I mean, he's a good boxer. [13:47] I mean, he does it all. [13:48] You know what I mean? [13:49] And this is what I want him to do. [13:52] I want him to take Bo Ziennis to another level. [13:56] See, Bo Ziennis got so many different levels they can go to. [13:58] Y'all didn't see the other levels that he can go to. [14:01] You know what I mean? [14:01] Y'all just seen a little bit. [14:03] I want somebody to bring it out of you. [14:05] And I think he's the guy probably to do it. [14:07] And you will see. [14:09] Remember, Xander can punch. [14:11] Bo Ziennis can punch, too. [14:13] So you got to be careful. [14:15] You got to be careful. [14:16] All right. [14:17] Let's turn to the fighters. [14:18] And let's start with the challenger. [14:19] Bo Ziennis, you've been listening with a smile on your face throughout this entire press conference. [14:24] Huge opportunity. [14:25] The opportunity that you've been saying you've been waiting for for a long time. [14:29] Kind of what's your mindset now that this fight is official? [14:33] First of all, I want to thank Virgil. [14:35] I'm not Virgil. [14:36] I want to thank Xander and his team. [14:38] Yeah. [14:39] I want to thank Xander and his team for, you know, taking this fight. [14:42] Because he didn't have to take this fight. [14:43] He could have won an easier route. [14:45] But like my dad just said, I think he bit off way more than he could chew. [14:48] And come fight night, they're going to see. [14:50] I'm going to show the world. [14:51] I'm the best in the world. [14:53] What do you think he doesn't understand about what it means to be in the ring with you? [14:59] Like I always say, you go watch me all day. [15:01] When you get in that ring, it's a whole different story. [15:04] I'm a lot faster than what you think. [15:05] I'm a lot stronger than what you think. [15:07] My IQ is higher than what you think. [15:08] He's going to be in for a long night. [15:10] So you're like that. [15:11] I've been watching some of your interviews over the last couple of days. [15:14] And you've basically been saying that he's taking this for the money. [15:17] That he's taking this because you're the biggest name at 154. [15:21] You're the biggest fight at 154. [15:23] Do you believe that? [15:25] I think, yeah, he took the fight. [15:27] But if he's so confident, why didn't he take the 55-45 to the winner? [15:31] That shows right there. [15:34] Like I said, he's a great fighter. [15:35] Good fighter. [15:36] You know, but it's levels. [15:37] And I'm going to show him why it's levels. [15:39] Maybe because I'm giving the opportunity to two belts. [15:43] If you believe in yourself, you would have took the 55-45. [15:45] I get what you're saying. [15:46] But maybe a fight with you and Virgil could have been 55-45 to the winner. [15:53] With a champion, I have two belts. [15:54] I'm the only one that has two belts in the division. [15:56] You want these. [15:57] I don't need to fight you. [15:59] I could have fought anybody else. [16:00] No, you're absolutely right. [16:01] You ain't have to fight me. [16:01] You could have fought somebody else. [16:02] But I'm just saying, if you believe in yourself that much, if the roles were the first, I would have did the same. [16:09] If you was a challenger and I had the belts, I would have took the 55-45 to the winner. [16:15] And you know for a fact you wouldn't. [16:18] You would have taken care of your family the same way I want to take care of my family. [16:21] No. [16:21] And that's part of boxing. [16:22] At the end of the day, I got to take care of my family. [16:24] I'm confident that I'm going to beat you on June 27th. [16:27] But I'm the champion. [16:28] I understand what you're saying. [16:30] But you're not listening. [16:32] If you believe in yourself, you would have took the 55-45 straight like that. [16:37] I understand you're trying to feed your family. [16:39] You're trying to do this. [16:40] You're trying to do that. [16:41] I'm doing the same thing, bro. [16:42] You know what I'm saying? [16:42] Of course. [16:43] Bro, there's levels that I'm really going to show you why I'm like that. [16:46] And if you really, like I said, if you really believe in yourself, you would have took the 55-45 straight like that. [16:50] There's levels and you're going to be uncomfortable when it comes to June 27th. [16:55] Promise. [16:56] I'm for every style. [16:57] All right. [16:57] What can you bring to the table? [16:59] All right. [17:00] What can you bring to the table? [17:00] You'll see. [17:01] You'll see what the 23-year-old brings to the table June 27th. [17:04] You can ask one of your sparring partners. [17:06] He knows. [17:07] Who? [17:08] He knows. [17:09] He's sitting right in front of you. [17:10] You say what? [17:12] Ain't he your sparring partner? [17:14] Who? [17:16] Omari? [17:17] No. [17:17] Omari. [17:18] You can ask him. [17:18] He's part of the stable. [17:19] No, he not. [17:20] I don't know what you're talking about. [17:21] He's part of the master's stable. [17:24] Yeah, he definitely part of the master's stable. [17:24] But like I said, bro, I'm going to show you why I'm going to take them both. [17:31] Them both come back to me for what it'll be. [17:32] At the end of the day, that's what it comes down to. [17:35] That's what it comes down to. [17:35] And I want to see it. [17:36] I'm taking them both. [17:38] And they come back to me for what it'll be, straight like that. [17:39] Hey, you're supposed to think that way. [17:41] Ain't no think I know. [17:42] You're supposed to think that way. [17:43] Ain't no think I know. [17:44] Everybody has to think that way. [17:45] Ain't no think I know. [17:46] All right. [17:46] All right. [17:47] 23 have tried. [17:49] Yeah. [17:49] I'm not them both, you fart. [17:51] All right. [17:51] Are you tripping? [17:52] I'm not them both, you fart either. [17:53] If I were to fart. [17:54] If I were to fart them same two guys as you fart, they would have been bashing the mess [17:57] out of me, bro. [17:58] It's levels, bro. [17:59] Yeah, yeah, yeah. [17:59] I'm trying to tell you it's levels. [18:01] All right. [18:01] And you're going to see for yourself. [18:02] And I'm going to make you feel everything. [18:04] And I want you to keep that same energy. [18:05] I will always keep the same energy, bro. [18:06] Everything that you've been saying. [18:07] I will always keep the same energy. [18:08] You wasn't keeping the same energy. [18:09] You just was on some buddy-buddy stuff just now when you came out here. [18:12] How? [18:13] You did. [18:14] Come on now. [18:14] Bro, your dad, when we were walking out, he said, what's up? [18:17] I said, what's up to him? [18:18] I'm respectful. [18:18] I'm not going to disrespect anybody. [18:24] I really like that. [18:26] Make sure you're ready. [18:27] I'm always ready. [18:28] Make sure you're ready. [18:28] I'm always ready, brother. [18:29] Yo, you believe in yourself? [18:31] Do you believe in yourself? [18:31] I really do. [18:32] You're making some money. [18:33] You know you want to bet. [18:34] You're making some money. [18:34] You know you want to bet. [18:35] You always want to bet on everything. [18:37] You always. [18:38] Because I believe in myself, man. [18:39] I believe in myself, too. [18:40] All right. [18:40] Well, so for some reason. [18:41] June 27th, I'm going to show you why I believe in myself. [18:44] Simple as that. [18:45] All right. [18:45] There's no bets to be made. [18:46] There's no nothing to be made. [18:47] There's no. [18:48] Take care of your family. [18:49] Take care of mine. [18:49] In the 27th, I will show you why I'm the best 154. [18:53] In the story. [18:54] I'm the best at 154. [18:55] You know that. [18:56] We'll see. [18:57] You know that. [18:57] But you mentioned the 55-45 you're talking about, of course, the split. [19:04] The per split on the money. [19:06] What do you think it says about him that he didn't accept that? [19:10] Like I said before, I just, you know, like I said, if roles were reversed, I would have [19:16] took you 55-45. [19:18] All right. [19:18] At the end of the day, it's about legacy for me and showing the world why I'm the best in [19:22] bro and why I believe in myself. [19:23] You know, and I would have took it because I know what I can do. [19:26] I know I'm capable of and I'm just different. [19:28] And he knew that. [19:29] And he's going to see. [19:30] Free like that. [19:32] All right. [19:32] That's cool. [19:32] Cute words. [19:34] That's cute. [19:34] You said what? [19:35] I said that's cute. [19:36] That's cute? [19:37] Yeah. [19:38] You got blonde hair, bro. [19:40] I got blonde hair. [19:40] It's something that has to do with cultural stuff. [19:43] Cultural stuff. [19:43] That's cool. [19:44] Cultural stuff from Puerto Rico. [19:45] That's cute. [19:45] That's cool. [19:46] That's cute. [19:47] Yeah, I know. [19:47] All right. [19:48] I know. [19:48] They fuck with it. [19:49] They like it. [19:50] All right. [19:52] All right. [19:53] All right. [19:54] Xander, let's hear from you because everyone at this, on this stage is in agreement that [19:59] this fight does not happen unless you are pushing for it. [20:02] You have been saying you won this fight for day one. [20:04] So explain to everybody, what is it about this fight? [20:07] What is it about facing Jerron Ennis that you absolutely had to do? [20:11] It's always, it's always been about legacy. [20:12] It's always been about legacy, becoming the youngest ever time with top rank legacy, becoming [20:18] the youngest world champion at 22 when I did it legacy, youngest unified world champion [20:22] legacy, and now fighting one of the best in the world, in the division. [20:27] It's about legacy. [20:28] Anybody could have taken the easy route and just win any other fighter, top 15, just get [20:32] an easy W and that's it. [20:34] Collect some good cash and that's it. [20:37] I want to fight the best. [20:38] I want to show that I'm the best every time I step into the ring and that's what I'm going [20:42] to do June 27th. [20:43] You know, you say he's one of the best. [20:45] You've also said that he's been a bit of a weight bully in his career, fighting at 147 [20:50] pounds. [20:50] Why do you believe that? [20:51] Because he has. [20:52] I mean, everybody at 147 was always smaller than him. [20:55] He was a big guy. [20:57] A 54 is different. [20:59] A 54 is different. [21:00] When you got these guys coming down from, when you got these guys coming from 190, from [21:04] 180, 185, 200, it's different, brother. [21:07] It's different. [21:08] Yeah, that's how much you weigh right now, right? [21:10] Maybe. [21:11] Who knows? [21:11] That's why you asked for 16 weeks? [21:13] Huh? [21:13] That's why you asked for 16 weeks to fight? [21:14] 16 weeks? [21:15] Yeah, yeah, yeah. [21:15] 12 weeks? [21:16] Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. [21:17] That's all we needed, 12 weeks. [21:19] Yeah, yeah, yeah. [21:21] The original date was June 6th, though. [21:23] The original date was June 6th for you. [21:26] The original date for me was June 27th. [21:28] I always had that date. [21:30] You can ask Todd. [21:32] I hear you. [21:32] I had that date in Puerto Rico. [21:34] We changed it. [21:35] We changed it. [21:35] We changed it for you. [21:37] You have an effect camp. [21:38] We changed it. [21:39] We changed it for. [21:40] We changed it to Brooklyn for you. [21:42] We had that date in Puerto Rico. [21:43] You having a fat camp right now? [21:44] What do you mean? [21:45] I had that date in Puerto Rico. [21:46] What are you talking about? [21:47] No, why you asked for so much time, though? [21:49] Because I had the date. [21:50] I had June 27th on my mind. [21:52] That was what we're getting ready for in Puerto Rico [21:54] with another fighter. [21:55] They said, but Jaren Booth. [21:56] So what I'm saying is you having a fat camp right now? [21:58] No, not at all. [21:58] Yeah, yeah, you definitely is. [21:59] How? [22:00] You definitely is. [22:01] How? [22:01] What you mean, how? [22:02] You look, I thought you was a big guy. [22:04] You look as big as me, ain't it? [22:05] Who? [22:05] That's what they say. [22:07] That's what they say. [22:07] That's what they say. [22:08] That's what they say. [22:09] You'll see. [22:10] All right. [22:10] We'll see. [22:11] All right. [22:12] So what do you think, Xander? [22:13] You know, you've seen what he's done at 147. [22:16] A lot of people tapping him as maybe a guy [22:18] on the fringe of that pound-for-pound list. [22:20] What do you see as your biggest advantages [22:22] going into this fight? [22:23] Man, everything. [22:24] I mean, he's never faced an athletic fighter like me either. [22:27] I'm as tall as him. [22:28] I'm as fast as him. [22:29] I'm as strong as him. [22:30] And I'm going to show him come June 27th. [22:33] Butch, what do you think your advantages [22:34] are going to be in this fight? [22:36] My advantages? [22:37] My advantages, I'm going to do whatever I want [22:40] straight like that. [22:41] There's nothing he can do to stop what I'm done. [22:43] Like I said before, he's a good fighter. [22:45] But it's levels. [22:46] It's really levels to this game. [22:48] And I'm going to show him. [22:49] All right. [22:50] I'm going to show him. [22:51] Cool. [22:52] You're supposed to say that. [22:54] Bro. [22:54] I'm glad you believe that. [22:55] I'm glad you're saying it. [22:56] Okay. [22:57] That's why you're supposed to say it. [22:57] You're going to see it on fight night, though. [22:59] All right. [23:00] Yeah. [23:00] Everybody else said the same thing. [23:01] We don't got to do too much rapping. [23:02] What was that? [23:03] We don't got to do too much rapping. [23:04] You know that we do not. [23:05] Yeah. [23:05] Make sure you're ready, though. [23:07] That's what I'm saying. [23:08] I just want you to be ready. [23:09] You're going to be chasing shadows, brother. [23:11] Bro, your head is humongous. [23:13] I'm not going to miss. [23:14] All right. [23:14] You tripping. [23:15] All right. [23:16] You is tripping. [23:17] All right. [23:18] Make sure you hit it. [23:19] Make sure you hit it. [23:20] And you get it right. [23:21] If you don't hit it. [23:22] If you don't hit it. [23:23] Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. [23:25] Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. [23:25] You took it away from him. [23:27] Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on. [23:29] Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. [23:30] I heard you say something that I don't move my head. [23:33] Bro, I watched you fight several times. [23:35] You do not move your noggin, bro. [23:37] You get hit with clean, flush shots. [23:40] What about you? [23:41] Bro, it's boxing. [23:42] We're going to get hit. [23:42] All right. [23:43] But you was trying to make it seem like. [23:44] You just proved my point. [23:45] No, but listen. [23:46] What do you mean? [23:47] You're boxing. [23:47] I'm not finished talking. [23:48] I'm not finished talking. [23:49] But you're trying to make it seem like I just get hit all crazy. [23:52] But watch this. [23:53] On fight night, make sure you'll be ready. [23:57] And like I said, bro, I'm not going to miss that head that you got. [24:00] I promise you. [24:01] That's crazy, bro. [24:02] I promise you. [24:03] That's crazy. [24:04] It's like you said. [24:04] It's boxing. [24:05] We're going to get hit. [24:06] We're going to get hit. [24:07] You get hit, too. [24:07] And you get hit flush. [24:08] And I've seen it. [24:09] I've seen you being hurt. [24:10] Never. [24:11] I haven't been hurt. [24:12] I haven't been hurt. [24:13] All right. [24:13] You have not seen me hurt. [24:15] I'll show you some highlights later. [24:17] Yeah, show me some highlights later. [24:18] Please do. [24:19] I got you. [24:20] I've seen you get hurt, for sure. [24:21] Yeah. [24:22] By one time. [24:23] Yeah, by regular people. [24:24] Yeah, yeah, yeah. [24:25] By D-plus fighters. [24:26] Yeah, one time. [24:27] Yeah, yeah, yeah. [24:28] And he wasn't even hurt. [24:29] He wasn't even hurt. [24:31] Listen, though. [24:31] You getting better. [24:33] Yeah. [24:33] Like I said, it's levels, bro. [24:34] And I'm going to really show you. [24:36] It's all right. [24:37] I'm really going to show you. [24:38] Please work on moving your head, though. [24:41] You got to work on putting on some weight. [24:44] It's going to be different. [24:45] It's going to be different when you can walk me down. [24:46] You know how many people that I knock out, bro, that's bigger than me, bro? [24:49] When they're bigger than me, I knock them out every single time. [24:52] And you're going to be one of the next ones. [24:54] Guaranteed. [24:55] All right. [24:55] Guaranteed. [24:55] Guaranteed. [24:57] Guaranteed. [24:58] Yo, it don't matter what he do. [24:59] He can run. [24:59] He can jive. [25:00] He can sit there. [25:01] He's going out. [25:01] You are going to be chasing shots. [25:02] He is going out. [25:03] I guarantee you. [25:04] You're going to be 10 steps behind me every night. [25:06] You're not even fast. [25:08] You're slow. [25:09] All right. [25:10] All right. [25:10] Everybody says the same thing. [25:12] Everybody says the same thing. [25:13] I love it. [25:13] I enjoy it. [25:14] No, I want you to. [25:15] When you leave here, I want you to go home and watch yourself. [25:17] Like, for real. [25:18] You don't want to show you. [25:19] I'm going to show you. [25:20] That joint is like target price, bro. [25:21] I'm going to show you why the 22-year-old kid is a U.S. Firewall champion. [25:24] That's nowhere near me. [25:25] That's not doing what I'm doing. [25:27] It's as simple as this. [25:27] Bro, I got pinpoint accuracy. [25:29] I'm not going to miss. [25:30] June 27th. [25:31] I'm not going to miss. [25:32] June 27th. [25:33] I'm not going to miss. [25:34] The kid is going to show you why he's the kid. [25:35] I hear you. [25:36] That's it. [25:37] I hear you. [25:37] All right. [25:38] I just want you to be ready, though. [25:41] I just want you to be ready. [25:42] Because I don't really think you're ready for what's coming. [25:45] All right. [25:45] All right, Jaren. [25:46] All right. [25:47] I want you to be ready. [25:49] I got you. [25:51] That's all I want you to say. [25:52] That's all I want you to say. [25:55] Boots, this fight, does it end in a knockout? [26:00] 100%? [26:01] For sure. [26:03] Xander will ask you the same question. [26:04] How does this fight end? [26:05] He's going to run through these punches all night long. [26:08] He's going to be like a bull just running through them. [26:10] Boom, boom, boom, boom. [26:11] We're just running through them. [26:12] It's all right. [26:12] He just said boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. [26:14] I'm ready. [26:16] I'm going to be ready June 27th. [26:17] Thank you. [26:18] That's all I want you to say. [26:18] I want you to hear you say it. [26:20] I never go out there looking for a knockout. [26:23] Yeah. [26:23] But I promise I'm going to rip his heart out. [26:25] I guarantee you that. [26:27] That I promise. [26:27] You keep talking about ripping my heart out. [26:29] Yeah, yeah, yeah. [26:29] Like, that's anything. [26:30] But, yo. [26:31] You're going to be uncomfortable. [26:32] Listen. [26:33] Uncomfortable how? [26:35] I'll show you. [26:35] I'm going to show you. [26:36] What can you do to make me uncomfortable, bro? [26:38] I am going to show you. [26:39] I am going to show you come June 27th. [26:41] Bro. [26:41] I am going to show you come June 27th. [26:43] Oh, my goodness. [26:44] Boy, oh, boy. [26:48] Well, I can't believe we have to wait until June 27th. [26:51] Back here at the Barclays Center, titled Unification Fight. [26:54] Xander Zayas, the Unified Champion. [26:56] Boots Ennis, former Unified Champion at 147th. [27:00] Right here in this building in Brooklyn. [27:02] Tickets are on sale right now. [27:04] If you can't be here, you can watch exclusively on DAZN Worldwide. [27:08] We're going to face these two guys off right now. [27:10] And we'll see you right back here on June 27th. [27:14] Yeah. [27:14] What boxing is all about. [27:30] Two of the best in the 154-pound division. [27:34] Squaring off for two versions of the 154-pound title. [27:45] Dron, Boots Ennis, undefeated, 35-0. [27:48] Two-belt title holder at 147 pounds. [27:54] Xander Zayas, the young upstart, 23-0, already 23 years old, [27:59] already a Unified Champion at 154. [28:02] You can see the size of both these guys. [28:24] Xander, a true 154, nearly a career-long 154. [28:29] Dron, Ennis, in his second fight in the junior middleweight division. [28:50] A huge crowd here at the Barclays Center. [28:53] The Puerto Rican crowd supporting Xander Zayas. [28:56] Philadelphia, short Amtrak ride away. [28:59] All here June 27th at the Barclays Center. [29:14] You can see Xander Zayas, the naturally bigger fighter. [29:17] Doesn't believe that Dron Ennis can walk him down the same way he's not walked guys down [29:23] in the welterweight division. [29:25] Two belts on the line. [30:14] 154-pound division. [30:21] Just an outstanding fight. [30:23] The best against the best. [30:24] Two young fighters. [30:25] Undefeated records. [30:26] As you can tell from that press conference, both guys very confident going into this fight. [30:32] A lot of smiles right now, but no smiles in the ring in June when these two go at it. [31:05] It is going to be a physical fight between Xander Zayas and Dron Ennis. [31:20] Just staying eyes locked, refusing to break the stair. [31:25] Neither one of them. [31:31] And Dron Ennis widely considered right there on the fringes on the pound-for-pound list. [31:37] Xander Zayas trying to prove that he belongs there. [31:41] Two belt title holder. [31:42] Just 23 years old. [31:44] Rapid rise over the last eight months. [31:46] One of the best fighters of the last eight, nine months. [31:50] Two straight fights. [31:50] Two straight wins. [31:51] Two straight world titles for Xander Zayas. [31:58] As I mentioned for Bouton Ennis, took him 34 fights to become unified at 147. [32:02] Now here he is. [32:03] Second fight into his career at junior middleweight. [32:06] Trying to become a unified champion here. [32:33] Can you hold that stair long enough? [32:35] Something like that is bound to happen. [32:57] We're going to check in briefly with Eddie Hearn. [32:59] Eddie, not bad. [33:01] You were excited about this fight before. [33:03] You're probably more excited about it now. [33:04] This is the fight of the year for me. [33:06] And, you know, whenever we get the best of the best, but when we get two undefeated guys, [33:11] two young guys, putting it all on the line, like I said, this is not a conventional matchup. [33:16] But as fight fans, we're unbelievably lucky to get this matchup. [33:20] And I can't wait. [33:21] You've got to respect that. [33:22] You've got to fear the confidence. [33:24] But this guy, as he said, is different. [33:27] You're looking at, I think, not just one of the greatest fighters now, [33:30] but one of the greatest fighters of our generation. [33:33] But you've got to go and prove it. [33:35] On a stage like this, sold out June 27th at the Barclays Center. [33:38] It's going to be a wild night on DAZN. [33:40] That is June 27th, live on DAZN here at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. [33:46] The Unified Junior Middleweight Championship will be on the line. [33:49] Xander Zayas against Jerron Ennis. [33:52] You don't want to miss it. [33:57] DAZN Ultimate is the first rule, first rule, the first rule. [34:01] You do not pay-per-view. [34:02] You do not pay-per-view. [34:03] You do not pay-per-view. [34:05] The ultimate is here. [34:07] Second rule of DAZN Ultimate. [34:09] Second rule, you don't pay-per-view. [34:12] Because Ultimate gives you a minimum of 12 pay-per-view fights a year at no extra cost. [34:19] You do not pay-per-view. [34:21] Join us ringside and welcome to DAZN Ultimate. [34:25] Make sure you sign up to DAZN's Ultimate Plan. [34:29] It's the best value for fight fans all over the world. [34:32] Here's what's coming up. [34:33] David Benavidez steps up to face Zerto Ramirez for his WBO and WBA World Cruiserweight titles May 2nd in Las Vegas. [34:42] Then May 9th, heavyweights collide as Fabio Wardley's WBO World Heavyweight title is on the line against Daniel Dubois at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester. [34:51] And how about this one? [34:53] Alexander Usyk defends his WBC heavyweight title against glory kickboxing superstar Rico Verhoeven on May 23rd at the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt. [35:05] And of course, the presser we just watched. [35:07] Xander Zayas versus Boots Ennis for the WBO and WBA World Junior Middleweight Championships of the World. [35:14] And don't forget, Saturday, April 25th, live from Las Vegas, Jarrell Big Baby Miller will fight undefeated Cuban Linear Pero in a WBA World Heavyweight title eliminator at the Fountain Blue in a can't-miss showdown live and exclusively on DAZN, the global home of boxing. [35:35] On DAZN, the fights never stop. [35:38] Biggest nights in boxing all year long. [35:41] Biggest nights in boxing all year long.