A welterweight unification between champions Jaron Ennis and Brian Norman Jr. has fallen apart after a short spell of negotiations.
The collapse comes on the back of Ennis’ promoter Eddie Hearn issuing a challenge to Norman to ‘get this fight made’ after stating ‘two offers were made to Top Rank‘ for a two-belt battle in 2024.
However, after both parties discussed unifying the IBF title in possession of Ennis and Norman’s newly-acquired WBO version, the fight hit a brick wall due to a money dispute.
Norman’s team, led by co-manager Adrian Clark, were happy to accept $1.5m guaranteed take-home pay for their fighter. It’s reported Hearn was only offering a flat fee of the same sum that would then be required to pay out sanctioning and other fees.
Outlining their position, Clark said, “Dude [Hearn is] used to managers accepting whatever for their clients. We came to negotiate and get the best deal for Brian Norman. They didn’t want to pay what we asked for. We’ll try it again next year.”
Clark added, “If he were actually taking home $1.5m, the fight would have gotten done. Based on the deduction and sanction fees, it wasn’t an offer that made sense to take.”
Previously, Norman told YSM Sports Media he had accepted Ennis’s offer to fight but was rebuffed until one of the participants claimed the other two straps.
“We accepted the fight. My dad called Bozy [Ennis, Jaron’s father] and told him we accepted the fight. Then Bozy said, ‘We ain’t trying to fight right now. We want to save that for undisputed’. So your daddy is the one who said no, not us.”
Norman added, “The way he was talking, he was talking like some big dog. I’m not going for that. There are a lot of fighters bowing down to him; I’m not one of them. I’m myself. You’re no big dog as long as I’m here!”
Progress has been made since then, but that seems to have hit an impasse this week. Fans are not happy that Norman and his team won’t accept what seems a generous fee after the Georgian earned only $100,000 for his last victory.
Ennis will be forced to move on to an ordered rematch with Karen Chukhadzhian by September 3 unless there’s reconsideration. The IBF has mandated the fight that can only be set aside for unification purposes.
Norman is also planning to battle Derrieck Cuevas instead of Ennis, currently ranked seventh in the WBO.
Read all articles and exclusive interviews by Phil Jay. Learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor since 2010. Follow on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
