Main event miss and a stage stack: More drama for Paro vs. Papot fight card

Tom Naghten

Main event miss and a stage stack: More drama for Paro vs. Papot fight card image

No Limit Boxing/Scott Davis

After a fight week already filled with drama, organisers have been again left to put out fires ahead of No Limit Boxing's pay-per-view in Brisbane on Thursday.

Ahead of Tuesday's press conference, one fight was scrapped while two were forced into last-minute changes.

Then, at the weigh in on Wednesday, main event fighter David Papot (30-0-1) missed weight on the first attempt, putting his IBF welterweight world title eliminator with Queensland southpaw Liam Paro (26-1) in jeopardy.

MORE: Everything you need to know about Paro vs. Papot

Sans underwear, the unbeaten Frenchman came in 40 grams over the 66.68kg limit and had two hours to drop the weight.

At the second time of asking a few minutes later, Papot was successful, seeing Paro, his team and the promoters breathe a big sigh of relief.

"I think he's struggling, if he wasn't struggling, he would have made weight," Paro said prior to Papot's successful second attempt.

"I wish him all the best, I want him 110 per cent.

"I want no excuses when I put him on his back."

That drama came after Dominican fighter Jorge Santana (15-1), who is set to face Liam Wilson (16-3) in the chief support, fell off the back of the stage while checking his weight before the official weigh in began.

Santana was checked over by medicos before being given the all clear to fight at Pat Rafter Arena on Thursday night.

No Limit boss George Rose said after a stressful week, it was the last thing they needed.

"We talked yesterday about hopefully that'd be the last of the drama," Rose said.

"[Wilson's] opponent took a fall before the weigh in and we had to get him medically approved to go on and everything's fine for him.

"And the main event, 40 grams might not seem like a lot, but when you're fighting for a world title eliminator, it matters."

Earlier in the week, Paulo Aokuso's scheduled fight with Shukhrat Abdullaev was scrapped amid visa issues for the Uzbek, while an agreement couldn't be reached for the Olympian to take on Ben Hussain as a late-notice replacement.

A shoulder injury to Brock Jarvis saw him withdrawn, with Ken Aitken instead to face Sonny Knight, while Floyd Masson's Indian opponent was replaced with Johan Linde at short notice.

As it stands, here's how the card looks:

Paro vs. Papot fight card

  • Liam Paro vs. David Papot; welterweight
  • Liam Wilson vs. Jorge Santana; super featherweight
  • Ken Aitken vs. Sonny Knight; super welterweight
  • Jacob Ng vs. Rikki Naito; super welterweight
  • Floyd Masson vs. Johan Linde; heavyweight
  • Dharringarra Trewhella vs. Lachlan O'Shea; super welterweight
  • Danny Keating vs. Sachin Nautiyal; welterweight
  • Matthew Hosking vs. Lance McDonald; welterweight

Tom Naghten

Tom Naghten is a senior editor at The Sporting News Australia where he's been part of the team since 2017. He predominantly covers boxing and MMA. In his spare time, he likes to watch Robbie Ahmat's goal against the Kangaroos at the SCG in 2000.