Paul Butler won the interim WBO bantamweight title with a unanimous point decision victory over Jonas Sultan.
The Filipino fighter was a late replacement for John Riel Casemiro, who held the full WBO bantamweight title but was prohibited from fighting in Liverpool after it had emerged that he had controvened regulations over weight loss by using a sauna.
Eight years ago Butler gave up his own bantamweight title in pursuit of other titles at a lower weight but he was unsuccessful, and nearly a decade later he has regained a strap of sorts. If Casemiro is stripped of his belt then Butler could be elevated to the division champion, or be given a shot at the vacant belt.
Butler started strongly and raced into a comfortable lead on the boards, allowing him to weather Sultan’s late efforts.
Butler had planned to fight Casemiro in Dubai back in December but that was called off, also due to the Filipino champion’s weight problems.
“It’s been a long journey,” Butler said after the fight, reported BoxingScene.com. “Dubai didn’t happen, Casimero didn’t happen again tonight but we had Sultan and for me he was a better opponent because he had beaten Casimero. We had 48 hours to make a gameplan and that is what I can do in 48 hours.
“I had to stay switched on, but now and again I wanted to stand there just to let him know he couldn’t just push me around. But you win the easy way and the easy way for me tonight was moving my feet, making him miss and making him pay.”