Their scheduled 12-round welterweight fight comes with a hard 147lbs limit, which means Papot had two hours to shed the additional weight. He initially weighed 147.3lbs before he stripped and weighed in again while covered only by a bath towel. 

Regardless, Paro has every intention of proceeding with the contest.

“I’m ready to fight,” Paro told host and Australia media personality extraordinaire Ben Damon. “If he wants to fight for the title, he has to a professional and make weight."

Paro-Papot will air live on Australia Main Events and Kayo Sports this Thursday from Pat Rafter Arena in Tennyson, Queensland, Australia. With a win, Paro will become the mandatory challenger to recently crowned IBF welterweight titleholder Lewis Crocker.

Papot, 30-0-1 (5 KOs) aims to beat Paro in what would be a major upset. The 34-year-old southpaw will fight for the first time outside of his native France.

Paro, 26-1 (15 KOs) fights for the second time since the end of his IBF junior welterweight title reign. He earned the belt with an upset win over Subriel Matias last June on the road in Manati, Puerto Rico. He returned to the island for a December 7 title defense against Richardson Hitchins, who outpointed Paro over 12 rounds.

Not one to dwell on heartache, Paro has chosen to keep the line moving.

The 29-year-old southpaw earned a 5^th round stoppage of Jonathan Navarro on June 25 in Cairns, Australia. The bout was Paro’s first fight on home soil since a 1^st round knockout of then-unbeaten countryman Brock Jarvis in what marked Matchroom Boxing’s first foray into the Australian market.

Paro’s weight on Wednesday (local time) was his heaviest since 2017, though still within the contracted limit.

“I love this shit. I feel good and ready to make my presence felt in the welterweight division,” vowed Paro.”

Weights for the full card are below.

Liam Paro (146.7lbs) vs. David Papot (147lbs) - 12 rounds, IBF welterweight eliminator

Liam Wilson (130lbs) vs. Jorge Santana (129.5lbs) - 10 rounds, junior featherweight

Jacob Ng (153.7lbs) vs. Rikki Naito (153.9lbs) - 6 rounds, junior middleweight

Dharringarra Trewhella (149.3lbs) vs. Lachlan O’Shea (149.5lbs) - 6 rounds, junior middleweight

Sonny Knight (164.9lbs) vs. Ken Aitken (162.2lbs) - 8 rounds, super middleweight

Danny Keating (149.9lbs) vs. Sachin Nautiyal (150.7lbs) - 5 rounds, welterweight

Matthew Hosking (144lbs) vs. Lance McDonald (143lbs) - 4 rounds, welterweight

Weights to come: Floyd Masson vs. Johan Linde - 6 rounds, heavyweight

Jake Donovan is an award-winning journalist who served as a senior writer for BoxingScene from 2007-2024, and news editor for the final nine years of his first tour. He was also the lead writer for The Ring before his decision to return home. Follow Jake on X and Instagram.