Three months ago Marvin Sonsona won the WBO junior bantamweight title in the ring at Casino Rama, but this morning he lost that belt on the scale.
Sonsona, an undefeated 19-year-old from the Philippines, weighed in this morning at 117.6 pounds, 2.6 pounds above the junior bantamweight limit. And while he will still headline tonight's Rumble at Rama boxing event, WBO rules force him to relinquish the title if he wins.
But the title is still at stake for Alejandro "Payasito" Hernandez, who made the 115-pound limit and can win the belt if he defeats Sonsona tonight.
At Thursday's news conference Sonsona told his promoter, Allan Tremblay, that he weighed 120 pounds and seemed confident he could make weight.
That same day Tremblay told reporters that Sonsona – who has grown three centimetres since September – wouldn't remain in the 115-pound division much longer.
"He's a young guy exploding into a man," Tremblay said after Saturday's weigh-in.
Even after giving up solid food mid-week Sonsona couldn't slim down any further. When a Friday night workout only got him to 117, Tremblay decided to forfeit the title rather than try something drastic to make weight.
"He could have drained himself down to 115, but after six rounds he would have been a depleted fighter," he said, noting the danger in sending a dehydrated fighter into the ring. "Why kill him? Why take a possible loss when we have another plan for him anyway?"
That plan includes moving Sonsona up to the 122-pound division, where Tremblay currently promotes Filipino prospect Ciso Morales and former IBF champ Steve Molitor.
Tremblay also hinted Sonsona's move to a new weight class would foreshadow a similar move by Molitor, who is currently in line to fight for the IBF's 122-pound title.
Molitor looked lean and strong when he weighed for the co-main event Saturday morning. He weighed 126.2 pounds, 4.2 pounds above his normal fighting weight but easily below the 130-pound limit for Saturday night's bout against Argentina's Jorge Saez.
Source: thestar.com
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