Movin' On Up: Edgar Sosa and Celestino Caballero considering jumps in weight

Edgar Sosa and Celestino Caballero are both looking like they'll move up in search of easier weight cuts and/or bigger money fights in 2010.

Sosa, a former long-reigning junior flyweight titlist who just lost his belt controversially, will move to 112 pounds when he returns from about five-to-six months off after some facial surgery. He's been rumored to be heading up to flyweight for all of 2009, but kept making more and more defenses of his 108-pound title, with every fight supposedly the last one at the weight. He told The Record (link via BoxingScene.com) the following:

"The doctor assures me that there will be no problem in resuming to my career. In a month I can exercise, and then return for some light training in the gym, and maybe in four or five months we can return to boxing but we will wait. I will return, God willing, and do one or two fights at ten rounds and then go for the flyweight title."

Sosa was named "champion emeritus" by the WBC after the controversial loss to Rodel Mayol, meaning that upon his return he is free to go after the belt he lost at 108 or the title at 112. He's choosing 112, which many expected and feels overdue.

Reigning WBA and IBF junior featherweight titlist Celestino Caballero looks like he'll be moving to featherweight. Boxing Scene was told by various sources in Panama that it appears imminent, as Caballero is basically out of money options at 122 pounds.

Caballero moving up strengthens 126, and even more so, it fully guts the 122-pound division, which two years ago was thriving. Israel Vazquez, Rafael Marquez and Daniel Ponce de Leon have all made their way to 126, and Juan Manuel Lopez joins them in January when he fights Steven Luevano.

Caballero's departure would mean that Toshiaki Nishioka and Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym are as close to dominant forces as the division would come for the time being, though 19-year old Marvin Sonsona will join the division soon, too.

Boxing Scene says it's more likely that Caballero will seek a fight with Yuriorkis Gamboa than one with Juan Manuel Lopez. Caballero has called out Lopez for months, and Lopez has said he's willing to take the fight, but Top Rank decided to match Lopez with Luevano first. Lopez's struggles with weight at 122 may have played a role in his tougher-than-expected fight with Rogers Mtagwa in October.

But Caballero also talked turkey with Gamboa this year, and that, too, never came about. I don't think he's going to land anything with either of them, and he might need to go ahead and turn his attention elsewhere. Top Rank's clear plan is for Lopez and Gamboa to both win on January 23, then match the two up in a potentially explosive summer war in New York, probably on Puerto Rican Day weekend, perhaps paired with a Miguel Cotto comeback fight. Top Rank isn't going to have Caballero getting in the way of money-making ideas, no matter how much he talks.

But there are more solid options at featherweight than at 122 for Caballero. Reigning IBF featherweight titlist Cristobal Cruz is willing to fight anybody, it would seem, and since Caballero holds their belt at junior feather, that fight could probably easily be made. That's just one idea. There's also Elio Rojas, Jorge Solis, Ponce de Leon, Rocky Juarez could use a fight, etc.