What Up With Jaron Ennis’ Beard? Why ‘Boots’ Is Forced to Shave for Zayas Fight

Jaron Ennis will look a little bit different once he gets into the ring with Xander Zayas for his unified super welterweight world title fight.

Physically, Ennis looked great on the scale as he weighed in at 153 pounds, one pound beneath the super welterweight title limit. 'Boots' has spent the majority of his career competing at 147 pounds, making it no surprise that he made championship weight with ease.

However, Zayas' team has had a gripe with Ennis' facial hair throughout fight week and finally got a response to their unique request. The New York State Athletic Commission approved Ennis' request that Ennis trim his beard to match his jawline before fight night, Chris Mannix reported on DAZN during the weigh-ins.

NYSAC rules Jaron Ennis must trim beard before Zayas fight

"There was some drama this morning around the length of the beard that Jaron 'Boots' Ennis fights with," Mannix said. "There was a request from Xander Zayas' team that 'Boots' trim his beard going into this fight on Saturday night. 'Boots' politely declined that request, but the New York Commission has come in and said that he does need to trim his beard down a little bit."

While there were no beard restrictions in either fighter's contracts, the New York State Athletic Commission still has the right to step in and make a ruling as the fight's official sanctioning body.

🚨 Jaron Ennis will have to trim his beard! 🚨

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Ennis did not trim his beard before his final face-off with Zayas on Friday, but he is expected to have it shortened before all the boxing action unfolds on Saturday night.

Xander Zayas' complaint targets common boxing debate

Zayas' team filed the complaint based on their belief that Ennis' current beard length supports his chin strength. The effect of a beard on a boxer's chin has been a popular topic of discussion for years, with some studies supporting Zayas' claim.

An April 2020 study by Oxford Academic is the most commonly cited source among those who believe that beards strengthen fighters' chins. The study "measured impact force and energy" on two inanimate objects designed to resemble human skin — one with thick hair and one without hair.

WBA and WBO super welterweight champion Xander Zayas | Courtesy: Mikey Williams/Top Rank

The study concluded that the subject with thick hair had a peak force that was "16 percent greater" and absorbed "37 percent" more total energy.

While Zayas has never been known as a heavy-handed boxer, even the slightest advantage can tip the scales at the championship level.

Ennis has never had to trim his beard before, but he has also never had any previous opponent openly complain about it. Now that Zayas managed to get it trimmed, facial hair for all boxers could become a much bigger discussion moving forward.

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