“No, I didn't pay £40. I didn't watch the fight live. I woke up in the morning and I watched it,” said Adam Azim of his rival Dalton Smith’s world title win on Saturday.
Smith had to travel to enemy territory to take on knockout artist Subriel Matias after his promoter Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing failed to win the purse bid for the bout back in September. Fresh Productions, having outbid them, staged the fight at the Barclays Center in New York City, with the contest airing on PPV.com for £41.95 to viewers in the UK.
The odds were stacked against Smith on away turf, but he tore up the script and stopped Matias midway through the fifth round.
“It's expensive, £40. You can get two pay-per-views with that,” added Azim. “What's the point of paying £40 when a lot of people aren't even watching the fight? That was the only downfall. The broadcasting could have been better. But he got the job done. He boxed really well.
“[Eddie Hearn] should have won the purse bids. He could have easily won the purse bids. He's got a lot of money. Matchroom is a massive company. So why not put [the money up for] Dalton Smith and have the fight here [in England]? If he had the Sheffield fans, and had it in a stadium, and he won it, the feeling would have been much better.”
While Azim questioned how the fight was marketed to UK fans, he made it clear that Smith’s victory is ultimately a significant moment for British boxing at 140lbs, and one that could benefit him directly. With Smith now a world champion, the prospect of a long-awaited domestic bout between the two has only grown, particularly if Azim can secure a belt of his own.
“It's great news for me. The fight's getting bigger. If I win a world title, we'll have a massive unification in Britain,” he said. “A bit like Carl Frampton versus Scott Quigg. We've had Amir Khan versus Kell Brook; Conor Benn versus Chris Eubank Jnr. You've got Nigel Benn and then you've got Chris Eubank Snr. [Me and Smith] is the next one.
“He's a world champion now. I'm like, ‘Wow, he's a world champion now.’ I want to become a world champion. I want to be known as a world champion. Just winning the world title, you've got that in your book. That's your legacy. You've got that now. Winning an established world title as well, WBC, is a big thing. I want the IBF [world title], so that would be good.”
Smith, however, has suggested that those circling his new title will have to earn their opportunity – a comment seemingly aimed at Azim. The 23-year-old, though, is in no rush to force the fight, insisting he has time on his side.
“He's probably aiming it at me, but look, I'm still young,” Azim said. “He's 28, I'm still 23. I've got plenty of time in my career. He's done that at 28. Imagine me doing that earlier in my career. I've still got years in front of me.”
For now Azim remains focused on his own climb towards a title, starting with a fight against Gustavo Lemos on January 31. But he is confident that when the time comes for the two British rivals to share the ring, it will possess the kind of edge that only domestic grudge matches can hope to possess.
“I think when we end up fighting each other, you're going to see the spark that both of us have,” Azim said.
