As one of the highest touted prospects in Japanese boxing it’s fair to say there is a lot of pressure of former amateur stand out Hayato Tsutsumi (4-0, 1) [堤 駿斗]. Sadly today that pressure intensified, as he took part in the weigh in for his bout with world champion Anselmo Moreno (43-6-1, 15), with the two set to meet at Korakuen Hall tomorrow.
Sadly for Tsutsumi it may be that the pressure is getting to him, as at the weigh in today he failed to make weight. In fact the 24 year old failed to even come close to the agreed Featherweight limit for the bout.
The former star of Japanese boxing originally weighed in 1.6KG (3.5lbs) over the agreed limit, coming in closer to Super Featherweight than Featherweight, when he first weighed in for the bout, leading to Moreno describing the situation as “very disappointing”. On a second attempt to make weight he came in only 50 grams (.11lbs) lighter.
As for Moreno he came in comfortably under the limit, at 56.8KG (125.2lbs).
The bout technically isn’t off, though it could be tomorrow, with Tsutsumi now being required to weigh no more than 61.12kg (134.75lbs) at 10am tomorrow. Tsutsumi did apologise to Moreno and his team, and it seemed like it was taken as a genuine apology with Moreno's wife Ruth Laguna Díaz de Moreno, giving Tsutsumi a hug and she looked genuinely concerned for the youngster.
It's worth noting that Tsutusmi had to cancel a bout last October citing "poor health", and with this weigh in, it seems clear that his body simply cannot continue to comfortable make 126lbs and that, to continue his career he will need to move to Super Featherweight.
Sadly for Tsutsumi the JBC have taken a hard line stance on fighters coming in overweight, and we’d be very surprised if he’s not given a minimum of a 6 month ban, if he makes weight tomorrow. Thankfully for Tsutsumi he is stable mates with former WBC Flyweight champion Daigo Higa (21-2-1, 19) [比嘉 大吾], who himself has had issues with missing weight, and could act as something of a mentor for Tsutsumi, and offer some advice of how to focus during a suspension.
Whilst this is a major setback for Tsutsumi, and his reputation, it’s undeniable that he is a special talent, and this experience should be regarded as a major learning experience for him and his team, and the focus now needs to be on making weight for tomorrow, getting past Moreno, and then focusing on filling into a fully fledged Super Featherweight or even a Lightweight, rather than continue to try and boil down to a weight that is clearly not a healthy one for him.
