liam smith fought last night!

Some kind of WBO sanctioning term. They wouldn't sanction it as a final eliminator or perhaps vacant title bout (depending on when Canelo vacates the belt) if Smith went into the bout off the back of a loss. Hence the bout against the journeyman. I agree it's a farce and something that the sport need to look at.

On a somewhat similar note the fighter who was awarded the win over Chocolatito on Saturday fought his last two fights against guys making their debut. I know the scene in Thailand is different and they fight with far more frequency over there but that sounds like a nonsensical setup to me.