Twenty-second of February in Riyadh, as part of the stacked Beterbiev vs. Bivol II undercard. WBO interim light heavyweight title at stake, Buatsi's first defense. Only a few years apart in age, but the Liverpudlian has five more years a pro and thirteen more bouts on the odometer - along with two more losses than has the unbeaten Ghanaian-Londoner. Smith has a 1" height and 3½" reach advantage. Zero common opponents between them, professional or amateur, somewhat unexpectedly.
Everytime I've predicted Smith to win a competitive fight I've been burnt; I thought he would beat (or at least trouble) Canelo, and I thought he would beat Beterbiev. So maybe I should know better but I'm still picking Smith in this matchup; I think he will walk Buatsi down behind his high guard and pepper him with hooks to the body and head en route to a stoppage victory.
When did everyone cool off on JB? I remember there was serious buzz for an eventual showdown with Anthony Yarde for a while...and the WBO actually ordered that fight after Buatsi defeated Hutchinson but for some reason instead we've gotten Yarde vs. a random Latvian, and this.
A few years ago when he KO'd in a row Conroy, Periban, and Ford his stock was high and I regarded him highly. I started to sour on him after that, following his gruelling win vs Bolotniks and his razor tight win vs Richards, it became pretty clear his pretensions at world level are limited. In his last three fights he has gone the distance with Stepien, Azeez and Hutchinson and has looked rather placid in the process. I'm just waiting for him to be exposed when he fights the right world level opponent.
That's fair, but he was first to beat both Stepien and Azeez...and Azeez and Hutchinson were down twice apiece. (as was Bolotniks, who's known for being a handful despite the ugly record) Eye test does matter, though.
If he was a few years younger I think his resume would be to his credit. However he is 31, and has previously ducked out of a title fight against Bivol. It just seems to me he is treading water waiting for an easy shot at a belt to come his way and I cannot respect that.
Smith was wise to get that run out at the weekend. It was clear he needed to get back in training from the looks of him
While I've picked Callum Smith multiple times and he's ended up letting me down, this will not be one of them. He KO's Joshua cold.
Fan of both and it’s a 50/50 in my eyes. I think I’m going with Buatsi by dec though. Smith never really lands that money punch in his biggest fights.
Smith has looked awful every time he's stepped up and has done absolutely nothing eye-catching at LHW. His best wins are an injured retiring Groves and a questionable win over Ryder. Massively overrated, and I pick Buatsi to UD him.
Benavidez v Morrell is a better matchup. I expect Buatsi to win this one. Those are the 3 contenders Beterbiev needs to get to after Bivol. Callum Smith feels like he just was the best fighter available for this oppurtunity.