Trainer Stephen Edwards doesn't think Top Rank will put their client Xander Zayas in danger by having him defend his WBO junior middleweight title against Jaron "Boots" Ennis. Should Boots Ennis fight someone tougher this weekend? Edwards says that Zayas (22-0, 13 KOs) is technically a world champion at 154, but he's only 23 years old, whereas "Boots" Ennis is 28. He doesn't have the skills to fight like that. Top Rank is being careful with Zayas. Top Rank hasn't said what it wants to do with Xander in the long run. They'll probably protect him for the rest of his career and attempt to maintain him at the top as long as they can until Turki Alalshikh pays Zayes a lot of money to fight someone excellent. "You wouldn't put Zayas in danger against Ennis." Stephen Edwards told MillCity Boxing that "Boots" would be a minus 5, minus 600 favorite to beat Zayas right now. He claimed that it would not be a good idea for Top Rank to let their fighter, Xander Zayas, battle Jaron Ennis. Ennis vs. Zayas Would Be a Bloodbath It would be a bloodbath for Xander to battle "Boots" now or in the future. They fight in two separate ways. Zayas is like a peripheral contender who has been pushed into winning the WBO 154-lb belt that is open. He is simply a champion in name. A Made-Up Champion? He'd probably be in over his head if he had to fight someone like Ennis or one of the top contenders or belt holders. I think Xander is a perfect illustration of how to make something for marketing. He'll be fine as long as he doesn't fight anyone who can fight. "You don't put a little kid in a fight like that against a guy that good." Top Rank has the top people who set up fights. They've been around long enough to know that "Boots" is a higher level than Zayas. Stephen said, "They're not dumb." Turki Money Could Make a Big Difference Top Rank probably wouldn't set up a fight between Zayas and "Boots" Ennis without Turki Alalshikh being involved to provide a lot of money, like we witnessed with the Canelo Alvarez vs. Terence Crawford fight last month on September 11th. Top Rank wants to make Xander a celebrity on the East Coast and make him a lot of money. To do that, they need to keep him away from boxers like Ennis, Fundora, Abass Baraou, Vergil Ortiz Jr., Bakhram Murtazaliev, and Erickson Lubin. Zayas would probably lose to all of them. "Bakhram would be the most dangerous fight." Edwards noted that Bakhram Murtazaliev would be a tough opponent for Ennis since he is the largest hitter and has the most one-shot power of the four winners. After Ennis knocked out Uisma Lima in the first round last Saturday, promoter Eddie Hearn didn't seem to want IBF junior middleweight champion Murtazaliev to fight him next. Hearn said he wanted Vergil Ortiz Jr., the WBC interim champion, in early 2026. If not him, then Sebastian Fundora.