Adam Azim banged his chest in celebration as he stepped off the scale.
The unbeaten junior welterweight was a comfortable 139.3 pounds in a bid become the quickest male boxer to win a European (EBU) title. By comparison, France’s Franck Petitjean looked drained but still came in right at the 140-pound limit as the defending EBU junior welterweight titlist for their 12-round main event Saturday from Civic Hall in Wolverhampton, England.
Azim-Petitjean will air live on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom beginning at 7:00 p.m. local time and on the NBC Peacock app in the U.S. beginning at 2:00 p.m. ET.
Petitjean (24-6-3, 6KOS) claimed the EBU title in a twelve-round, majority decision over Samuel Molina his most recent contest on June 10 in Paris.
The feat came after a previously failed bid versus unbeaten Enock Poulsen last April in the road in Copenhagen, Denmark. The 35-year-old southpaw fights on the road for the sixth time but still in search of his first win outside of France. Petitjean is currently 0-4-1 as a visitor and is listed as a massive +800 underdog according to BetMGM.
Azim (9-0, 6KOs) is listed as a whopping -1400 according to the same sportsbook.
A win will see the 21-year-old eclipse the mark by London’s Spencer Oliver, who won an EBU title in his eleventh pro fight. The bout is the first scheduled twelve-rounder for Slough’s Azim, who has gone the ten-round distance in each of his past two fights.
Main undercard weights, Sky Sports/NBC Peacock (2:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. GMT)
Matteo Signani (32-6-3, 12KOs), Savignano sul Rubicone, Italy, 158.3 pounds vs. Tyler Denny (17-2-3, 0KOs), Rowley Regis, West Midlands, 159.3 pounds—12 rounds, middleweight
Richard Riakporhe (16-0, 12KOs), Walworth, London, 202.3 pounds vs. Dylan Bregeon (13-4-1, 3KOs), Nates, France, 203.3 pounds—8 rounds, cruiserweight
Rhys Edwards (14-0, 4KOs), Penygraig, Wales, 127 pounds vs. Brad Foster (15-2-2, 5KOs), Lichfield, Staffordshire, 126 pounds—10 rounds, featherweight
Preliminary undercard
Dylan Cheema (9-1, 2KOs), Coventry, West Midlands, 137 pounds vs. Robin Zamora (20-24, 10KOs), Bratislava, Slovakia via Managua, Nicaragua, 139 pounds—6 rounds, junior welterweight
Gully Power (6-0, 1KO), Wolverhampton, West Midlands, 129.3 pounds vs. Engel Gomez (8-19-2, 4KOs), Managua, Nicaragua, 131 pounds—6 rounds, junior lightweight
Tion Gibbs (10-1, 0KOs, Birmingham, West Midlands, 139.3 pounds vs. Efstathios Antonas (5-2-1, 1KO), Rhodes, Greece, 139.3 pounds—6 rounds, junior welterweight
Nyall Berry (8-0, 4KOs), Chemsley, Wood, West Midlands, 123.3 pounds vs. Darwing Martinez (8-14-2, 6KOs), Managua, Nicaragua, 125.3 pounds—6 rounds, featherweight
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. X (formerly Twitter): @JakeNDaBox