Paul Butler snatched the interim WBO bantamweight title with a convincing unanimous decision victory over Jonas Sultan on Friday in Liverpool.
The judges handed out cards of 116-112, 117-111 and 118-110 in favor of the 33-year-old Englishman.
Butler (34-2, 15 KOs) was originally scheduled to face champion John Riel Casimero (31-4, 21 KOs) as a mandatory challenger. The fight was called off after Casimero broke a British Boxing Board of Control rule by using a sauna to speed up his weight cut within a week of the fight. The fight had already been postponed to December 11, 2021 due to a viral gastritis which struck Casimero on the day of the weigh-in.
Butler would become full champion if the WBO decides to officially strip Casimero of his title.
Sultan (18-6, 11 K.-O.), called upon to replace Casimero with a few days notice, was outclassed by Butler in the majority of 12 rounds.
