Callum Smith will give it another go at the world level, facing WBO interim light heavyweight champion Joshua Buatsi on February 22nd in Riyadh.
Is Buatsi Damaged?
It’s a formidable obstacle that Smith has in front of him, challenging the big puncher Buatsi (19-0, 13 KOs) for his interim strap, but he’s catching him at the right time. Buatsi, 31, is coming off a war with Willy Hutchinson on September 21st, and he hurt him several times in that fight.
Hutchinson isn’t known for his power, but he showed what a fighter can do when they don’t quit and keep landing. He also showed that Buatsi can be hurt and vulnerable if he’s hit enough. Callum had much better power, and he could take advantage of the cracks in Buatsi’s armor that Willy revealed.
Smith, 34, was knocked out in the seventh round earlier this year by unified heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev on January 13th. The 12-year professional Smith (30-2, 22 KOs) put in a game effort but was overmatched by Beterbiev, who took him out with a barrage of artillery in the seventh.
Smith’s Power
Some of the short shots that Smith hit Beterbiev with would give Buatsi massive problems because he was swinging for the fences in that fight. Artur wasn’t hard to find with his left hook, but he walked through the shots to eventually knock him out.
In his last fight, on November 30th, Smith defeated little-known Carlos Galvan by fifth-round knockout in a confidence-builder.
The former WBA super middleweight champion Smith’s career has slowed since losing his title to Canelo Alvarez four years ago in a one-sided 12-round unanimous decision loss on December 19, 2020.
Smith has fought only four times since the match against Canelo, and obviously, the money he got in that match has allowed him to be inactive. If Smith is going to take advantage of the time he has left in his career, he’s got to try and fight at least three times a year instead of on an annual basis.
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