Liam Paro could have to wait a few more weeks in his bid to become a two-division titlist.
BoxingScene has learned that Belfast’s Lewis Crocker has reportedly suffered ligament damage in his hand, which will postpone his planned IBF welterweight title defense versus Australia’s Paro. Neither an official date and venue were set but was rumored to land on April 5, either in Brisbane or the Gold Coast.
It has been suggested that the fight could now suffer a delay by as much as four weeks, depending on how long it takes for Crocker, 22-0 (11 KOs) to heal and resume camp.
Messages left for Matchroom Boxing (Crocker) and No Limit Boxing (Paro) were not immediately returned as this goes to publication. However, BoxingScene has learned that Matchroom has provided No Limit representatives with a medical certificate, which will likely be required by the IBF as well as the bout is a mandatory title defense.
Paro’s team was reportedly furious over the development to the point of suggesting that Crocker faked the injury to buy more time.
No Limit earned promotional rights after it edged out Matchroom by just $27,000 during a February 3 purse bid hearing.
The development mean that Crocker would have to hit the road for the first defense of the title he won in a September 13 decision victory over Limerick’s Paddy Donovan in his Belfast backyard. Crocker scored two knockdowns in their bitter rematch, which proved the difference on the scorecards, as he claimed a majority decision and the vacant IBF 147lbs title.
The second act took place six months after Crocker was awarded an 8th round disqualification win in their IBF title eliminator last March 1, also in Belfast.
Paro, 27-1 (16 KOs) was declared as the de facto mandatory challenger after his own planned clash with Donovan fell through late into the promotion. The two were due to meet on January 16 in Brisbane, only for Donovan to fall ill late in training camp and was pulled from the IBF final elimination contest.
Paro was already the No. 2 contender after a 12-round win over unbeaten David Papot last September 18 in Tennyson, Australia. It was his second consecutive victory, both which followed a December 2024 points loss to Richardson Hitchins to end his IBF 140lbs title reign after just six months.
The length of the delay could cause issues with the IBF, who ruled that the bout must take place no later than 90 days out from the February 3 purse bid. Even with a medical extension, Crocker is locked into this fight if he wants to keep his title.
Matchroom already attempted to sidestep the mandatory obligation, with plans to have Crocker meet Conah Walker in a rematch. The requested voluntary defense was rejected by the IBF, on the grounds of the proposed dates (April 18 and April 25) falling outside the period when Crocker was due to face the sanctioning body’s top-rated contender.
Once the bout is rescheduled, Crocker is entitled to 65 per cent ($748,800) of the abovementioned winning bid as the defending titleholder. The remaining 35 per cent ($403,200) would go to Paro as the mandatory challenger. However, his end is more subject to the contractually agreed upon compensation per his promotional contract with No Limit – a common practice by promoters, who normally bid enough to satisfy the demands of the opposing party.
