Crawford’s comments came after watching Ennis’ win over the then-unified WBA and WBO junior middleweight champion Xander Zayas last weekend. Although Ennis dominated before scoring a seventh-round knockout, he absorbed plenty of clean shots.
Part of that came from Ennis’ willingness to stand and trade rather than box from the outside. Unlike Crawford, who built his career around movement and defensive awareness, Ennis prefers fighting in the pocket, giving Zayas more opportunities to connect than he should have had.
“If Boots gets hurt like he did the last time, Ortiz is gonna finish him,” Crawford said to the AH Show. “He’s got to tighten up his defence. He gotta stop exchanging. I know he’s faster than most, more explosive than most, but, at the same time, he’s shown in the past that he can get careless and that he’s going out there just to fight. When you get higher and higher, that’s not gonna be enough.”
Crawford’s comment is less about Ennis’ ability than his discipline. While praising Ennis’ speed and explosiveness, the former four-division world champion suggested those advantages could disappear if he continues giving elite punchers opportunities to land clean shots.
Ortiz’s trainer, Robert Garcia, has already made it clear his team is willing to take the fight, although Vergil Jr could return in an interim bout after more than eight months out of the ring. His promotional dispute with Golden Boy Promotions is also believed to be nearing a resolution.
If the business side falls into place, Crawford believes the outcome may come down to whether Ennis corrects the defensive lapses that have surfaced at times during his career. Against most opponents, those mistakes have not cost him. Against Ortiz, Crawford isn’t convinced he’d get a second chance.
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