Jason 'the Power' Cook has lost his European lightweight title after failing to make the weight for Saturday's bout with Italy's Stefano Zoff.

The 27-year-old champ was two pounds over the 9st 9lbs limit when he went on the scales at the British Boxing Board of Control's offices in Cardiff.

He was given two hours to sweat off the excess weight but when he returned he remained a pound and a half over the limit.

The fight goes ahead at the Bridgend Recreation Centre, but any result other than a Zoff win would mean the title going vacant.

Cook was named the third-best domestic fighter of 2002 by trade magazine "Boxing News," putting him ahead of such names as Lennox Lewis and Joe Calzaghe.

The former postman had put a prison spell behind him to win five fights last year, including a trip to Italy where he took the European crown from Sandro Casamonica with a stunning knock-out.