Andy Lee keeps WBO title as Peter Quillin fails to make weight
Friday 10 April 2015 22:43, UK
Andy Lee will retain his WBO middleweight title after Saturday challenger Peter Quillin failed to make the weight for their Brooklyn bout.
The undefeated Quillin initially weighed in at 161.4lbs and was given two hours to get down to the 160lb limit, but he failed to do so, managing only to get within six ounces.
That means Lee, who came in at 159.6lbs, will not have to put his title on the line at the Barclays Center, and his first defence could now come against Billy Joe Saunders later this year.
The Limerick fighter is unbeaten since 2012, when he was defeated by Julio Cesar Chavez, but he won the WBO belt with a stoppage of Matt Korobov in December.
Saunders waived his right to take on Lee before Quillin in order to set up a summer fight, which could take place in front of Lee's fans in Ireland.
Quillin was aghast over the weight issue, and took to Twitter to write: "What can I say? I didn't make weight. I want to apologise to Andy Lee and to all my supporters and fans.
"I made every effort to make weight but it just wasn't meant to be and I have no one else to blame but myself.
"I may not win a title tomorrow but I still have a fight to win and I still plan to put on a good performance. I promised to use this as a learning experience for the future. God bless."
