Should titles be allowed to be fought for at catchweights?

That's not bull****. That's currently how it works. But should it continue to work that way?

To any boxing historians reading this. How many times have we seen a champion impose a catchweight on a challenger with the champion's title on the line? I know there were several cases where a challenger requested a catchweight of the champion (SRL did that a few times), and there are lots of cases where two fighters fight at catchweights for no title. But I can't think of any cases off-hand where a champion required a catchweight of a challenger. Anybody know?

 

No, I understand perfectly. In fact, there isn't a minimum weight at all, just a maximum weight. If a flyweight wants to fight for the welterweight title while not weighting any higher than his normal weight, then he's perfectly allowed to do so.

So I'm perfectly clear on that.

It's also not my point.

My point is should it be legal for a boxer to set a LIMIT that's under the LIMIT established by the organization sanctioning the title. This has nothing to do with a valid weight range and everything to do with a valid weight limit. If one fighter *chooses* to come in below the limit of his own free will, that's one thing. If a champion *requires* a challenger to come in below the LIMIT in order to challenge for a title with a higher limit, it should lose its sanctioning.

See what I'm saying now?

 

Yeah, I hear you. That's currently what the rules state. But given the potential for abuse, as we may possibly be seeing with Pacquiao here, I think it's valid to question whether those rules should be changed.

It's circumventing because you're using your position as champion to lower the limit, in direct opposition to the limit of that weight class. I'm not saying that Clottey coming in at 144 should make it a non-title bout. I'm saying that Clottey coming in at 147 should't prevent them from fighting for a title that was established with a 147 limit. And I'm saying that should be written into the rules to prevent abuse from champions to modify the limits on voluntary fights, which make up anywhere from 66% to 75% of a champion's reign.

In short, should the alphabet organizations adopt verbage in their rules and regulations similar to this:

The Champion may not independently regulate, specify or otherwise limit the weight of his opponent beyond the limits and guidelines established by the organization. Doing so will result in the Organization's withdrawal of title sanctioning and no championship will be at stake.

 

Sure, and/or the other party can cancel the fight on those grounds.

By stating in the sanctioning bodies rules that weight stipulations are no longer accepted in championship-sanctioned contracts, it protects a fighter from being financially penalized for doing what is very much within the rules. The point is there shouldn't be *any* penalty for Clottey coming in over 144lbs but under 147, but until the rules change, a boxer has the extraordinary power to impose a penalty.