BN: How is it you came to be appointed Andy Cruzโs trainer?ย
I got a phone call months and months back. Jamil Parker, heโs a sports writer, called me and said, โDid anybody call you?โ I said, โNah, nahโ. He said, โThese people want you to train Andy Cruz, alright?โ I said, โOkay, when they call me, Iโll talk to them and see where theyโre coming fromโ. But I forgot that before that, somebody did call me โ it was Andy Cruzโs manager, and I forgot all about it. I said, โYou know what โ I think they called me and said they wanted to come down here and check me outโ. So, when he asked me about training Andy, I said, โYโall come down here and let me take a look at himโ. Even though I saw him when he fought Keyshawn [Davis, at Tokyo 2020]. Then I said, โYeah, Iโll take a look at himโ. That was then.
Then later on down the line they called me again โ they said they were gonna come down and visit me, and I waited for a while. Then all of a sudden he came down, I was working with him, and they liked what I was doing with him. They said, โYeah, he canโt punch, and he canโt thatโ. Man, I got him sitting down. I said, โHe can punchโ, yโknow what I mean? Itโs just with his left hand, he would smack a little bit, so I got him turning his shots a little better. If youโd seen the other day when he was boxing, you wouldโve seen what I was talking about. Heโs sitting down โ he can be champion, man.
Way I heard it, one of his managers was saying they saw the stuff that I do โ I guess it mustโve been on Instagram or whatever โ and they liked the way my son, Boots [Jaron Ennis], fights. They said I was the guy for them โ to train Andy. People was asking why he didnโt go to [the Las Vegas-based Ismael] Salas, or why he didnโt go to [the Miami-based Jorge] Rubio. He said, โNah, we didnโt want to go over there; we wanted to come hereโ, with me. So, I said, โOh, thatโs fineโ. Man, he fit right in, man. He had fun in here; we had fun in here, man. Heโll be dancing; singing; playing around and all that. Good guy, man. Good guy.
They just said they didnโt want to be in that type of environment [in Vegas or Miami] โย I donโt know โ because all them Cuban fighters go to them [Salas and Rubio]. I guess they didnโt want that.
BN: How do you overcome the language barrier?
Well, he understands some of the stuff that I be doing now. I mean, before, he didnโt understand it. His manager [Jofri Sanchez] is gonna come in with him anyway; he speaks for me.
Sometimes [Sanchez] doesnโt have to be there. [Cruz will] go in there, and Iโll tell him to do something with my hands โ to the body, or to the head, or something like thatย โ and he does it. He knows what Iโm saying to him sometimes too. When I say, โJab, more jabsโ, he understands that now. When he first started here, he would finish work on the bag, and he would sit down. I said, โYo, we donโt sit down. You gotta complete the whole regiment. After you hit the bag, you jump rope and exercise, or before that you might shadow box; you might get in the ring and boxโ. I said, โNo sitting down. Bullshit! Bullshit!โ. Thatโs what I said. So, heโd come in, โBullshit! Bullshit!โ So, now I told him, no bullshit, because heโs been doing what heโs supposed to be doing now. We have fun, man. I think he can be something.
BN: How aware are you of the scrutiny heโll be under this weekend?
Yeah โ and they got him fighting a 10-rounder. First fight coming out โ 10 rounder. With me? I wouldnโt do it, yโknow what I mean? I wouldnโt do it. But thatโs what they [Cuban fighters] do when they come here โ theyโve so many amateur fights [Cruz went 140-9 as an amateur]. And that was their job over in Cuba โ thatโs what they do. All they do is box. So, I guess they know more than me, but with my son, I would never do that. Gradually โ four rounds, maybe three or four, six rounders, and then eight rounders.
It donโt really concern me; itโs just that I wouldnโt do it. Thatโs the way we work here. Itโs an unnecessary risk. Then, [in Juan Carlos Burgos] โย he just fought Keyshawn [Davis, losing via points over eight rounds in December]. So, I think what theyโre trying to do โ theyโre trying to make a statement. Thatโs what I think theyโre trying to do, but I canโt fault them for that. But thatโs on them. Iโm gonna do my job, and they gotta do their job. Youโre picking this fighter, so thatโs on you.
I would tell them [if I thought they were making a mistake], but itโs gonna be up to them, because theyโre the managers. But I would tell them, โNo, no, I wouldnโt do that right nowโ. Oh yeah, I would try to stop that.
BN: Can Cruz join the leaders at the top of the lightweight division?
He will join them. Itโs not, โCan he?โ. He will join them; heโs gonna be right there. He will be champion; all he gotta do is pay attention; follow the script that Iโm laying down for him. Then heโs gonna be there. Like my man was saying โ he watching from the amateurs, the transition is to the pros now. So, now Iโm teaching him the pro style.
BN: Do you agree that your son Jaron โBootsโ Ennis and Vergil Ortiz are going to succeed Terence Crawford and Errol Spence at the top of the welterweight division?
I think so โ I think thatโs whatโs going to happen. Down the line, itโs gonna be Boots and Ortiz. Thatโs a good fight, because remember โ theyโre both coming. Itโs who gets to who, when it comes to them two. Thatโs what itโs gonna look like, between Boots and Ortiz. And theyโre gonna build that up โ just like [Oscar] De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather. So, theyโll probably clean the division out, and then itโs gonna be them two.
BN: Do you see Boots ever fighting Crawford or Spence?
Oh, I would love that. I donโt know about 147 โย I know eventually weโre gonna move up to 154 anyways, so we might meet them. We might fight them at 154, if theyโre still there, once we clean this 147 division out.
BN: Shawn Porter recently said Boots will prove the best welterweight since Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. Can he?
Oh, without a doubt, man. Boots can fight inside and outside โ you havenโt seen the best of Boots yet. But see, no oneโs made Boots go to another level yet. [Sergey] Lipinets, that was a good fighter, right? Look what Boots did with Lipinets [in 2021]. He knocked them out [in five rounds]. Heโd never been knocked out before. Boots is already on their [Crawfordโs and Spenceโs] level.