Espinoza: If Rahman Wasn't Committed To Making 200, Shouldn't Have Signed Contract

Stephen Espinoza is blaming Hasim Rahman Jr. for his canceled pay-per-view showdown with Jake Paul.

The contract weight for Paul-Rahman was bumped from 200 to 205 pounds late last week because the New York State Athletic Commission didn't believe Rahman could cut weight safely.

When Rahman initially signed the contract, he checked in at 216 pounds. Three weeks later, the 31-year-old weighed lost an additional pound, coming in at 215.

Responding to boxing insider Dan Rafael, Rahman inadvertently admitted that he gained weight after signing the contract: "But the first official weight check the day of the press conference I was over 220, come on bruh stop believe everything you hear an look at the facts."

Oops.

A day after the weight limit was changed from 200 to 205, Rahman refused to weigh any less than 215 pounds for his scheduled eight-round bout against Paul, who weighed in at 191¼ pounds for his most recent fight. Although the 25-year-old Paul (5-0, 4 KOs) had already given him an additional 15 pounds of leeway, Rahman asked for another 10 pounds. Unable to come to an agreement, their Showtime Pay-Per-View event was canceled Saturday evening

A day after the weight limit was changed from 200 to 205, Rahman revealed that he wouldn’t weigh in at any less than 215 pounds for his eight-round fight against the polarizing Paul, who was set to face a professional boxer for the first time in six bouts. Their Showtime Pay-Per-View event was therefore canceled Saturday night.

“If Rahman wasn’t committed to making 200 pounds, he never should’ve signed a contract to fight at 200 pounds,” Espinoza told BoxingScene.com. “He never should’ve told us for the last four weeks that he could make 200 pounds.”

The lowest the 31-year-old Rahman has weighed for a professional fight was 211¾ pounds in December 2018 against Damion Reed (3-20-1, 1 KO). He weighed in at 224¼ pounds for his most recent bout – a fifth-round, TKO loss to James McKenzie Morrison (20-0-2, 18 KOs), the son of former heavyweight champion Tommy Morrison, on April 29 at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas.

“It’s been an ongoing saga and I have to say it’s left a bad taste in all of our mouths,” Espinoza said. “It’s incredibly unprofessional the way this has been handled by the Rahman camp. We were given repeated assurances before he signed the contract that he was fine with 200 pounds. He signed a contract for 200 pounds. For various reasons, the commission asked that it be changed to 205 pounds. Jake agreed to that. And then [Saturday], out of the blue, we get word that Rahman wants to weigh 215 pounds. If he weighs in at 215, he could enter the ring at 225, 230, and that is an unsafe difference in weight.”

Rahman (12-1, 6 KOs) has faced fighters with the caliber of Reed for much of his career, as more than half of his opponents have losing records. With that said, it was quite a peculiar demand from Rahman considering his resume.

“It was a massive opportunity for Hasim Rahman Jr.,” Espinoza said. “I’m very surprised it went this way and very disappointed. More than that, I’m disappointed for every other fighter on this card who held up, you know, their part of the bargain, who were professionals, who’ve been preparing for the last four to six weeks, if not longer.”

Paul (5-0, 4 KOs), of Westlake, Ohio, could reschedule his return later in the fall, but this is certainly a step back for the up-and-coming prospect.