MX23RW : Thursday, June 13 00:34:07| >> :600:283424453:283424453:

Paul Smith to face Andre Ward despite failing to make weight

British super-middleweight Paul Smith weighs in more than 4lbs over for his bout with Andre Ward, but the fight in California on Saturday night will still go ahead.

British super-middleweight Paul Smith has failed to make weight ahead of his California bout with Andre Ward.

A catch-weight of 172lbs had been agreed between the two fighters, but Smith came in at 176.4lbs, which is even 1.4lbs heavier than light-heavyweight, the weight class above super-middleweight.

However, Ward, who weighed in at 171.8lbs, has allowed for the bout to go ahead, but according to ESPN boxing writer Dan Rafael, Smith can't weigh in at over 181lbs on Saturday morning. Meanwhile, the Liverpudlian has reportedly been fined 20% of his purse for the contest.

Smith is coming off the back of two world title defeats to Arthur Abraham, and it had already been agreed that Ward's WBA belt wouldn't be on the line, even before his issues with the weight.

ID:229210: cacheID:229210:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:1327:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Andre Ward reacts as his unanimous decision defeat of Edwin Rodriguez is announced for the WBA super middleweight championsip at Citizens Business Bank Arena on November 16, 2013
Read Next:
Ward: 'Smith won't be prepared for me'
>
rhs 2.0
Euro 2024 fixtures header
Friday, June 14
 
8pm
Saturday, June 15
 
2pm
 
5pm
 
8pm
Sunday, June 16
 
2pm
 
5pm
 
8pm
Monday, June 17
 
2pm
 
5pm
 
8pm
Tuesday, June 18
 
5pm
Wednesday, June 19
 
2pm
 
5pm
 
8pm
Thursday, June 20
 
2pm
 
5pm
 
8pm
Group Stage
Spain
vs.
Italy
Friday, June 21
 
2pm
 
5pm
 
8pm
Saturday, June 22
 
5pm
 
8pm
Sunday, June 23
 
8pm
 
8pm
Monday, June 24
 
8pm
 
8pm
Tuesday, June 25
 
5pm
 
5pm
 
8pm
 
8pm
Wednesday, June 26
 
5pm
 
5pm
 
8pm
 
8pm
Saturday, June 29
Sunday, June 30
Monday, July 1
Tuesday, July 2
Friday, July 5
Saturday, July 6


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!